Nick Harrison

there were loads of them, not the best picture but i was in a rush!!

This was from yesterday at the base of a Cedar, i'm thinking Xerocomus communis....

my offering for the day, found at the base of Horn Beam...

reminds me what a special place it is, makes me miss being there even more! do feel the vid was missing a certain star quality tho....

Chris, thanks for a informative response, it's answered some important questions for me. The issue of work load is something you hear from everyone, I guess you never quite know until you're in it! Well done to you and Andrew for completing, sounds like a mammoth achievement

From my understanding you're right Paul, from my previous life I did an unrelated arb degree and was told then it was a level 6 so presumably that still applies to current academia.

I didn't know that? I guess being such a niche industry means there are not that many out there geared up to deliver the high end courses.

That's how I've viewed the 2 routes, the QCF level 6 (old Prof Dip) being the more practical style syllabus for those looking to focus on consultancy type roles. Costs and how the courses are delivered do obviously come into the equation, it's a shame there's still just the one institution offering an online course for degree level in arb, kind of creates a bit of a bottle neck for prospective students potentially? I was also wondering how the 2 quals transfer to an international market, the more traditionally recognised university degrees/masters courses would presumably be more recognisable. Would be good to hear from those with experience abroad as to how the BSc & Level 6 are received overseas?

What with the current discussions going on about courses, wondered how people decided which root they were going to take between the 2 current options as per the title?

No nothing, other trees nearby a bit worse for wear too

Saw this today on a Norway. The leaf size is small and the crown is showing signs of die-back. This is involved in a root damage to footway issue, the offending root is too big to prune so i'm thinking long term the tree will need to go. Just thought i'd show some pics of the dysfunction

Not that I know of. Should be putting some out there so will look into once back at work. How did you decide which trees to place the traps?

Where did you catch these 20,QP? presumably you'll be taking a closer look in the trees now considering the increase in number of moths caught from last time?

Tempted to buy any for supper?

don't have any info on it just yet, literally landed on my desk the other with the request to have a look to see if any works needed. when I get back to work next week will find out more about it. let me know a good day for you and I can meet you there after work, if the guys want to check it out could also meet one lunch time, whichever works best for you? there's quite a large area of woodland in the north of the borough which I've yet to explore, might be some interesting bits in there.

looks like lovely scenery, did you have a nice time, hopefully not too much rain? do you think there may have been less fb's around because the French are more likely to be out there picking mushrooms for the dinner plate?

Thanks Paul, looks like I'm gonna need to pressure my manager a bit more!

just wondered who's actually bought/had a look at this document? If so, do they think the price is justified?

Thanks david 👍 I had thought resi also but the hispidus caught me out, hadn't seen one that small before and was looking for that featherry type effect when it desicates.

this was down as G.lucidum?

found this in the union of a sorbus today, previous inspection had said hispidus, wasn't that sure myself.

Went and had a look at this today. Is apparently the most prominent tree in the borough of Harrow where I work. Is called 'The Master Oak', haven't yet found out why but it's certainly a lovely tree. They've recently had to put a metal guard up due to idiot arsonists. A wooden fence has also been erected to at least the drip line to avoid compaction issues as well removing the need to carry out health and safety pruning works I assume. I'm thinking a little bit of end weight reduction work as a couple of lower limbs look quite extended and also maybe a mulch application....am happy to hear any other advice from wiser heads of course!

Will look up jakes presentation. Have seen some stuff about the Berent case, don't think the whole thing though. Will have a trawl around the ltoa website Cheers

that 's an interesting point about being put off buying a property that's been underpinned previously. I'm sure you've read all the research that talks about mature trees adding value to a property, does the tipping point into a negative feature happen once subsidence has occurred or is even the likelihood enough to affect the property price negatively? I guess the mortgage lenders and insurers are the bodies most likely to control that one. And what about the amenity value to the immediate neighbourhood, what detrimental financial effect would the removal of a high amenity tree due to subs have on those neighbouring properties? enough to factor into a potential fight to retain a tree?? I read the 'Tree-related subsidence: Pruning is not the answer' paper from 2005 which doesn't give much hope to trees that find themselves in a subs dispute, heard there has been an update which I've not been able to find? all interesting stuff I think, so look forward to doing the course later this year.

Hi Chris get what you're saying about the technical data side of things. As it stands, if the necessary investigations have not been carried out (soil and root analysis, adequate monitoring etc) I will not make a final recommendation. once the above has been completed, our loss adjusters provide their feedback and then it's my turn to input. I think what i'm struggling to get a grip on is how best to move forward in a situation where viable options are limited, i.e. there's a big potential claim waiting in the wings, the tree is, in my opinion, worthy of retention, so underpinning is the usual compromise, perhaps with some reduction works. from my limited time dealing with this scenario, the reduction work seems to be an add on from the insurers as some sort of belt and braces approach. I've recently had some correspondence from an underpinning company who have stated that their work is not guaranteed unless all trees within the vicinity are reduced to the height of the building affected, is this normal practise? I personally feel very reluctant to start pruning mature trees simply to tick a box in order to reach settlement. I have been working through various papers from the arb journal trying to find some clarity on how best to tackle this complex situation. The obvious paradox is that ultimately, trees in the urban environment are essentially trying to exist in an entirely unnatural environment, so I guess the odds are stacked against them. From what I can tell there's plenty of research on how best to deal with trees in the planning process but for those that are currently in situ providing such essential benefits, i'm struggling to find much helpful research in this area (could be i'm not looking in the right place) Part of the reason of looking at this course is that I'm hoping to increase my knowledge of subterranean root activity in these hostile urban environments and how best to deal with the increasing tide of damage claims. My experience up till now chris has been mainly climbing, I've done the usual route of level 2, tech cert, PTI, running my own business for 5 years and a very informative 2 years at Hampstead with Mr Humphries. So basically, very little in the field experience of subsidence! thanks for the input on this one nick