ScottF

Attached are a couple of images from the site in Caernarfon. It's been weeded several times this summer already and is getting weedy again late season. Also, it's not that obvious in the picture, but in this pale aggregate, the accretion of unsightly fines (as mentioned above) from the road isn't looking well. This has only just gone in, and in the flesh it already looks unsightly. In "Up by Roots" James Urban cautions that it has to be laid relatively thin (to maintain porosity) and not too close to the stem (to prevent damage). He also cautions that it should be seen as a temporary finish as it's not too durable. The site I looked at in Birley Fields in Hulme, Manchester in 2010 had many young trees installed into pits and dressed in this stuff, and they were almost all ring-barked. I guess if this stuff is seen as an option it needs to be laid with care and not too close to the stem. It still seems to me to be an option which seeks to keep teres from "being a nuisance" rather than trying to form part of a solution which offers the best possible growing conditions for the tree. I've added a spec for some pits which I produced in 2011 with stone edges and an open top with bark mulch. The finsihed items lok just like in the picture and the concerns with mulch blowing about, litter etc were unfounded. They just need topping up once in a while and watering and soil mediation is possible. You could maybe look at something like this in this instance, placing stone or precast lengths around the edge of an enclosure for the tree (as large as is possible), pinning them in place (and maybe to each other) to enclose a good layer of bark mulch or stone (a nice angular 10-12mm granite to deter animals?). Bangor Town Tree Pit final detail.pdf

Hi there. I've seen this bound resin used on dozens of sites now (it must have appeared in a landscape architects' spec sheet somewhere) and I'd say it's a poor fit. The resin cracks and splits and very easily becomes weedy. Also, unless there is absoltely no settlement is the substrate below it, it collapses into the void and falls apart. Also, on more than one occasion I have seen it move arouns where it's been lain up against ther stem of small trees and has essentially ring-barked them. I'm going up to a site I've been monitoing with this this morning. I'll take some pictures and post to demonstrate. In my view, this is a material that's been used for one application (path and play surfacing) and is being offered up to a use to which it's a poor fit in order to broaden its market. Avoid. Perhaps an open pit with some sort of non-invasive edging, filled with either bark mulch or an unbound mineral mulch would be suitable. This assumes there's enough room to walk around the tree without obstructing pedestrians.

Is this not more likely to simply be bacterial wetwood?

Cheers for the very quick delivery on our DBH tapes and weather writer. Less than 24 to the wilds of Wales is pretty much unheard-of, and much appreciated. Scott

QGIS is a very handy tool, but just be aware that some maps downloaded through the openmapping plugin are not licenced for commercial use. Check before using them in this way and issuing within a report, as you may fall foul of copyright. If you're just using the maps for your own use to orient yourself around a site, that's probably fine. I generally use Getmapping for any map shapefiles or drawings, but I have to confess I haven't shopped around for a while. Quick online service, though.. Best

Client contacted and visit arranged- many thanks. It's always great to have an enquiry from a client trying to do what they can to retain a tree, rather than remove it. Cheers all.

Hi mate. We're based in Llanberis and have a PiCUS and Resistograph. Would be happy to help. Drop me an email on [email protected]. Cheers Sloth

You could have a report produced by a competent person and then if any defects are identified, send a request to undertake the work, plus a copy of the report by recorded delivery. Assuming he signs for it, then if any loss-producing tree event will have been proved to have been preventable, since he will have been warned of any safety issues and how to hopefully abate them. This approach isn't without shortcomings or limitation, but would be relatively inexpensive to implement. Even tree consultants' rate pale into insignificance when compared to those of solicitors...

HI Chris. What version of the software are you running, out of interest? It looks fairly accurate to me, presuming that the loss of density is more gradual (from green to pale brown near the edge of the decayed area) than it looks in the picture. Obviously, it's showing a crack in the centre of the decayed area which doesn't look obvious. Have you tried adjusting the crack detection sensitivity in the software? Thanks for posting.

Wholeheartedly agree with Paul. Even if you're just doing dbh measurements or tagging with another arb out surveying, you'll learn lots and be quite useful, too. Where are you based? We collectively might be able to point you towards someone.

Hi Justme I'm based near Llanberis (40 mins from Pwllheli) and have worked extensively with Berwyn Owen of Owen Davenport (we have a number of projects underway with them at the moment). We have plenty of experience dealing with Gwynedd council and can advise on forestry and planning matters. You can email me on [email protected] if you want to discuss your project. Cheers Scott

Great to hear a happy ending. Hope the landy wasn't too badly ragged getting into it (if it's anything like some I've had it won't have proved too difficult). Sound liek the perps were repeat offenders. I've love to see some sort of financial redress where the theft of work vehicles or tools are involved to deal with the loss of earnings issue. Shouldn't we be compensated by the toerags for the money we lose by not being able to do our jobs due to these thefts? Just a thought. I remain open to some of the other, more physically painful, punishments often suggested in this section of the forum....

My Christmas mulled wine recipe isn't going to be the same without it.

In my experience, Kretz, along with whatever the primary agent is, will make fairly quick work of a sycamore. If it's near a road, I think it would be prudent to remove it. There's a time and a place for standing habitat.

Just signed up Steve. Couldn't resist at that price, brilliant stuff! We'll keep you posted on how it works for us.

I's agree with Matt. If you can get the content of the study guide wired, you'll be fine. I think that, although the guide's obviously a bit US-centric, it's an excellent primer to the more technical aspects of the trade. Very clear and well laid-out. What's "dead time"? Can I have some?

I'm typing this on my 2006 iMac which I brought into the office after my umpteenth PC laptop failed. Since 2006 I've been through 5 keyboards and even more mice, but the machine's never missed a beat. One issue with macs is that certain software won't run on it (Autocad with plugins. surveying software, landscape cost estimation software etc) and like one of the other guys above suggested, if you put windows through parallels on your mac, it slows it down. My solution is to run mostly pcs for me and my guys, and have a mac handy as well. It's not the ideal solution, but until all of the software I need is available for mac, it's my best option. If I only had to run one machine and depend on it, it would be mac all the way.

Phil Beech on this forum has had some experience with this. I had a look at it a while ago and felt it might become a bit costly though licencing. I understand it's had some revamps recently. Like anything, getting a demo and trying it out would make sense. Bear in mind that you'd still need autocad or some equivalent to create maps/plans with the data coming out the other end.

Using a scythe mower is the recommended method since you can leave the stubble relatively tall and since it cuts so cleanly the material falls tidily and can be left for a few days for the critters to escape. Like one of these: BCS Commander Mower

The question you should all have in mind is this: "in the case of any "5837 report" (excuse the nested quotation marks) could I defend my approach, whatever it is, to a slavering attack dog of a solicitor in a public inquiry or planning appeal?" From having been through a few of these delightful things, I can say it underpins everything I write.

It does, thanks Scott. As it happens the Birches I looked at where 650mm DBH and 20 metres tall - lovely trees but in my opinion unlikely to exceed 20 years further. Hi Paul- my point was- how long is the development going to be there before it's bulldozed and replaced with something else? I might have a root around and see if there's any data on this, as my experience is that while you sometimes see older buildings (Victorian schools etc) being demolished and replaced, I far more often see buildings of less that 40 years old coming down. With that in mind, what relevance has the lifespan of 40+ years for an A tree got, when a tree which is already in middle age, or a fast-grower which will mature during the development "lifespan"?

Trying to stick slavishly to the BS standard is an excellent way of giving yourself a headache. In an ideal world the arb assessment would be carried out prior to any layout being produced and should directly inform that assessment. In my experience, 80%+ of the time the layout arrives as a done deal and we have to try to make the trees "fit" using special construction methods, protective fencing and so on. These are the facts, irrespective of the standard. I've seen excerpts of the standard quoted and referred to in planning appeals and hearings, and any competent brief or planning consultant can deal with these with a conflicting passage from the same standard. In terms of tree life spans I'm always mindful of the typical "life spans" of modern developments- so many of the sites I've looked at recently are redevelopments of sites originally developed in the 70's and 80's, sometimes more recently. I think a nice silver birch, 300-400mm dbh would be an ideal tree for a modern development as it will be in its prime during the ACTUAL working life of the building, would never get too big or cast an overly-heavy shade. In your example, Paul, I think the birches you mention would probably be a better fit to a typical modern development, compared to sycamores or even oaks. Does that make sense? As someone else suggested above, to me the standard provides a rough framework approach for dealing with trees and development and everyone does it differently.

Did you notice the filthy great sweet chestnuts hanging off it in the Google Street View shot you provided? Chortle.

Due to a pretty substantial rush of work, we're now looking to take on 2x surveyors as previously described. I'd also be happy to hear from any highly experienced surveyors who would be interested in doing some urgent subcontract work. The work is in North Wales and Manchester.

I had a 2007 ranger which I unfortunately stuffed into a wall last Autumn. I'd get another one if the price was right- plenty of dealers, fairly cheap parts, nice to drive. Sensible choice. They seem to be fetching a fair amount second hand at the moment.