janey

Looks like I'm going back to site with my Kitchen Devil .

Going back to the original post: Nice job. The site looks awkward for your chater 8 stuff with a junction / roundabout in the work zone. Well set out . OK, that's my sensible comment over with.

Goat willows are pretty bomb proof. I think you'd have to try really hard to do any long term damage to them. Beeches can be a bit tempermental. If you're doing a heavy thin, bare in mind that at this time of year when the sun is very strong, there is a theoretical risk of sun scorch to the newly exposed bark in the inner crown. It wouldn't stop me from doing the work though.

What??? And risk contamination by operatives??? LoL.

Brown Tail Moth is UK wide on Roseacea, especially Crataegus. The over use of acronyms may be a predominently Southern problem, though

See them now?

Well posted

Sorry, I keep on forgetting there's a whole, big world outside of London . OPM - Oak processionary moth, Thaumetopoea processionea. Arrived from the Continent about four years ago on imported Quercus that were then planted at a site in South West London. Since then they have been spreading rapidly and can be found at multiple sites in South and West London. They can cause total defoliation on oaks (and occasionally other Fagales when food is scarce), but the main concern from them is to human health. They are covered in urticating (irritating) hairs from about the third instar which can cause extreme reactions in mammals. I think that includes most of us... They are a bit like BTM, but a much, much worse. You don't even need to be in contact with them, just being down wind is enough to get asthma like symtoms and irritated eyes, nose etc. They really are nasty wee buggers. The nests are very hard to spot, even when you are specifically looking for them. That's what the pictures above are. They look just light dappled light or occluded wounds on the underside of limbs. Should've got my photoshop skills brushed off and put some arrows in or somethin'. See Forest Research - Oak processionary moth - Thaumetopoea processionea

They have been in Ealing for a couple of years now. It was initially a small, isolated outbreak that was unfortunately near to the overground sections of two tube lines. So guess where the new sites are occuring? Yep, along and adjacent to the embankments. The speed at which these things are spreading is frightening. Unfortunely, there is still no joined up thinking with how to deal with them . We know where they are and their consequenses, but we don't know how to effectively get rid of them. One poor householder in the Borough has been served notice (not sure under which Regs...) to remove them and / or their oak tree, yet no one has told them how to do it!!! And yes, they really are THAT BAD. A couple of years ago I was left with a very painfull, tight chest just from getting cloes enough to a small nest to take photos and a large colony can easily defoliate a mature oak. So keep 'em peeled.

See if you can spot them (three normal res' piccies the three close ups):

Right you ident Gods out there, which of the above is this? My informed guess is that it's Rigidoporus, but I'm not 100% sure . It's on a large (DBH 90cm +) hybrid black poplar. I didn't get a sample so I don't know what the tube colour is - hence me asking fo help here!!! The decay stratagies are very different for the two fungi, but it won't make any difference to the tree's outcome. I just would like to know for sure what it is. The tree's growing along a well used public footway (and no, that can't be moved ) with 25 more similarly sized pops. This one is going to be left as a 6-7m pollard while the others are HEAVILY reduced.

Extensive bark necrosis then delamination. When this starts to effect enough of the circunference then you will see crown decline. Caused mainly by Pseudomonas. Though I have seen some tough old trees with literally no live bark up to about a metre above ground with a healthy looking crown.

Sorry, I didn't realise you worked in my area . LoL.

Sounds like some of the cards you see in 'phone boxes . Have you tried all the usual suspects: Hort Week, Arb Jobs, Landforce, Jobcentre Plus and some of the agencies like CTC, Hays Montrose etc?

I have the ''pleasure'' of having this godawful example of dodgy tree work within a few metres of my house. I reckon it's a good contender for the crappest work I have seen this week . Lazyness? Ignorance? Tighteness? Who knows, but it sure is uuuugly .

Giving up drinking and excepting being a social outcast has worked wonders for my hangovers

Mmmm, dinner

I like the idea, and I would like it even more if it was administered by another LA department, such as enforcement .

Equality. Diversity. Dignity for all. It's the state funded mantra and woe betide any one with enough common sense to point out that being morbidly obese may not be suitable for a would be climber. I've also had the opposite though - students who are well aware that they will never become commercial climbers, for whatever reason, and are on the course for their love of trees and they want more knowledge. All good attributes that should be encouraged. I think it sometimes takes someone with a lot more tact and diplomacy than me to point out the realities of the physical side of the job.

Oh, i'm disappointed . Thought you meant the large, very cute flying mammal, arb' trained to install the bracing. The clever wee thing.

That's usually the argument of the unattractive . Hey, just being honest. But to make it more PC, male AND female arborists tend to be young and fit and look nice in tight t-shirts and ballistics. Better? Or am I starting to sound far too old and lecherous...

Saw these wee critters when I was out surveying last week . Apparently, we have a strong population of Stags in west London, but it was still good to see one just hanging around the streets. I'm guessing the third picture is a camera shy lesser Stag? I could look it up or wait until someone from here enlightens me .

Make a mention of the various Reg's to show that you are aware of them, but I have never inspected a SSRA that has them as their own, seperate catagories. As you say, keep it simple and they are more likely to be filled in. Here are a couple of ideas you may find helpful: For stump grinding / planting, insist the operative draws a quick sketch of the site, marking utilities and anything picked up by the CAT, so that you know for sure they have had a good look around. One of my old Contractors used an acetate overlay to do their SSRA on and when they had finished at that site, they wiped it clean ready for the next one. It kept it legal, simple and there were no huge piles of paperwork in the truck.

I'm pretty much going to echo what everyone else has said and agree that it is the person NOT the gender that is important. Men and women are equally capable of being total muppets. In GENERAL, both sexes have their own strengths and weaknesses, physical and mental, and you can work with this to get a really good team together. I have worked for one man who was sadly very unconfident in has skills and felt intimidated by the stereotypical big, blokey climbers and had more women than men on his team. We got through sh*t loads of work between us and always got good feed back from the customers. And there are certain perks to being surrounded by fit, young climbers...

That's HUGE! Where is it?