Charlieh

1 damson tree, 1 plum tree (both old) and a huge oak branch right across a newly put up fenceline and several other dead limbs dropping out of the larger ash trees on the farm here. havent been further a field to look elsewhere, the wind is just picking up again now, hopefully not going to be driving rain against the window all night again! just waiting to see if this snow lands on us like there prediciting on the news! will have to crack out the quad and the toboggan if they are:proud:

Steve how bigs the job at saffron walden? fairly if its a few weeks im guessing, is that some forestry work?

i was with the wife and she didnt beleive me at first that the tree had been pruned, you had to look very closely and know what you were looking for, someone with great skill and ability had done a great job, from more that 25mtrs away you wouldnt have known anything had been done to it! i guess its a technique you really have to practise to get it right else it could look a real mess and have some very severe long term impacts, do you have any close up pictures of the finished branches?

has much research been into how much quicker branches die or start to decay? dont get me wrong i think this technique is really interesting, and has a really important place as a tree management technique, but im a newbie and just trying to get my head round the longer term issues, e.g. yes the tree might stay up right longer, but will the increased vaunerability of the tree mean it maynot survive as long as if it had been pruned in a traditional way? does this technique mean the tree needs more frequent work carrying out on it? sorry for all the questions, but that looks like a really tidy job you did on the tree, and i just want to know more about it as a technique, are they any decent books that go through this thoroughly?

I think thats the point though, i was walking around a local NT property over the weekend where they had used this technique, and also "normal" cuts with a chainsaw, in an open parkland setting, this technique looks far more natural than straight cuts, the other trees just look like they have been attacked by a chainsaw. BUT...it is a bit unusual seeing a tree where all the limbs appear to have snapped of at the same distance from the tree, thus keeping its natural shape!

whoops sorry ment my wife brother!

Sorry, just taking the pi$$, But seriously I work in conservation and can really see the benefit of this kind of work from a landscape point of view, i havent made my mind up from an ecological view point. i can imagine that it allows more ecological nieches, but what about the long term health of the tree, is it reducing the life expectancy? although we know dead wood is good (in the right situation) is this going to cause more headaches down the line when large limbs are dead and causing a risk to public (as i imagine this technique to be mostly used in parkland and amenity areas)

did you make the timber arch? looks like a handy bit of kit

Natural England have apparently currently put a blanket stop on all the work in the wood, Hopefully having a meeting with them in the next few weeks, so will feed back then, Just for some clarification i work for the wildlife trust on wetland and rivers (conservation and habitat improvement) and also a National parks authority (where i also sit on the wetlands species action group), and i really cant see the issue with the work, ultimately this might come to the issue that always gets them moving.....that stoping this work has some serious financial implications, for the forestry, the sporting interest, and above all i feel that the newts will suffer, and people will want compensating!

what the hell have naked people got to do with how the tree is pruned:wave:

i air dry mine, strack it with small sticks between the planks in a nice dry barn with a good airflow around it, i think depending on the species of wood, determines how long you have to season it, was the oak seasoned or green when milled? i have several lengths of cherry trunk drying but have painted the ends to prevent it spliting as it drys out.

yes we used to have a farm in croydon and there was a bombing range on it! had MOD up so many times to sweep the farm for bombs, think it scared the guys on the ploughs each time they pulled up a bomb! we used to have the de-activated heads along the workshop wall about 50 of them, i guess the range was probably used by most the local bases, think it was mostly incenduary (?) bombs to check for accuracy rather than making creaters in the fields, they did quite a few searches for fred moss round that area didnt they, I think he wound up in one of the local quarries, heard a rumour the police turned up another body locally when they were looking for him! (didnt hear anymore about that one though) and it looks like such a quite area!

My wifes brother ended up with 2 fractured vertebrate after miss treating a crack willow as he turned to get away it split and caught him between the sholders! air ambulance job! he still gets back pains 3 years on

Wasnt there a body turned up in one of those old huts a few years back? (Matt I assume those are the ones over near the Mordens?) i have spent a bit of time in the woods the other side of royston on one of the old bomber (b-24) bases, and it gets pretty eerie up there on dusk in the woods

sorry torch wood is on now

they must have had about 10-12motorbike units ferrying vehicles into the test area, and about 4 police cars patroling the area as well, they had the full set up, mobile weighing rig the lot going over everything that they could must admit it makes you think is everything on my vehicle ok?

sorry i was just taking the pi$$, had a similar kind of conversation with one of my veggie (dont hurt the fluffy animal) friends the other day, (what if the first humans had been vegetarians!) got back to the point debating that really humans developed when we started eating other animals, and thousands of years of evolution cant be wrong! NB Im not trying to start a huge row! before anyone starts laying into me, just friendly banter!

er cant remember seeing any cave drawings with neolithic hunters using air rifles! :wave: LOL!

Drove from southampton to cambs today, on the M3 alone i passed over 10 transits with chippers on the back from about 7 companies, just wondered if anyone got picked up buy the mammoth operation VOSA had set up near winchester? they were doing chav cars, transits, lorries, 4x4s best bit was they also had guys walking round the services car park checking everyones tax discs, when they went into the services! i had my petrol suzuki, so they didnt seem very interested (glad i didnt have the 130defender else i think they would have been all over it)

need to start weight training then as its bloody heavy!

gotta love the 084, push the button and dump an it opens up the bar oil pump an extra 25% for hard stuff! cant see why they stoped using this feature on the big saws (seems like its quite handy)

this new law is news to me! i think the petition could have been created by someone who as mis-inturpreted the new air pistols legislation to restrict the use of pistols that look like real firearms this is probably on the back of several people commiting suicide using the armed police, by running round pointing replica pistols at people and when armed response turn up the idiots run towards the police pointing the firearm at them and the police shooting them(this has happened several times recently) trouble is there are the few sensible educated users, then the hundreds of asbo types buying air pistols from "toy shops" and then running round causing problems with them. Anyone that has done a risk assesment for firearms work will apprecaite how carefull you have to be, using any kind of weapon, (i dont agree with needing a FAC, but i do think some kind of restriction is needed to stop hoodies getting them) Charlie (ps those bosky hoodies dont count!)

thats a bloody good price, you have a website? where are you based? and do you do mail order?

http://www.mister-solutions.co.uk/stihl-guide-bar-90-cm--36-rollomatic-e-super-1958-p.asp new bar £70 will PM the link to the online bar and chain manual, its on page 40 tells you how to do the nose swap Charlie

290 and 390's both use 3/8s micro sorry by mid range i ment not home owner but not pro use