JaySmith

I don’t have the inspection notes to hand but I would say the ganoderma has been present for between 3 and 5 years, this is before I became involved. The tree was noted to have deadwood/decline in the crown so was reduced a couple of years ago, since the reduction there hasn’t been a great deal of new growth. There are now four brackets from memory on the tree at different locations and when sounded with a hammer decay fairly extensive across a large area. I will be carrying out a Picus on the tree within the next couple of months to ascertain the amount of sound wood and what works are required. Ultimately if you are concerned with the tree and are purchasing the property I would be raising the issue with the solicitors.

There are so many ambitious targets to get more trees in the ground and rightfully so. It is all well and good government putting numbers out there, however it would appear that there has been little thought about how these targets are going to be achieved in the real world. The issues that local councils and private businesses face are multifaceted, on one hand stock is an issue, many of the nurseries work well in advance and won’t have factored these large new targets into their plans. Staff as we know across the industry is a real problem, there is a genuine lack of staff across the board and whilst one may argue that planting is not as skilled as an 80ft takedown over targets you still need people who understand the job and are competent at undertaking the works. Coupled with this budgets are an issue, government want to plant more but the funding needs to be there. Yes there are various grants and subsidies, but are they really enough? Also these new trees will also need maintenance in the future, especially in the urban environment. Aftercare is also a real issue, many of the problems we see like in the article are the result of a lack of aftercare. It’s all well and good planting trees but if you do not invest in a three year aftercare programme you may as well poor the money down the drain.

Looking at the pic I was going G.australe because of the thick white outer section. Tree looks like a red oak. I’ve got a red oak that has multiple ganoderma brackets on it. From sounding with a mallet the decay appears advanced and has got progressively worse over a short period of time. Personally from experience I find that red oaks don’t compartmentalise ganoderma that well, similar to how lime deals with it - although I’m only going off experience and not aware of any published papers. If there are any targets such as road/driveway etc like you say further investigation would be advisable. Sounding with a mallet may be sufficient to map the decay and estimate sound timber and then decide whether or not further analysis such as Picus is required.

There appears to be significant reaction wood at the site of the cavity, the trees reaction to the material loss. Without knowing the location a concern would be how exposed is the tree, it would appear that it has others around it afford it some protection but is still fairly dominant. If the area is exposed then wind throw and uprooting could be a concern, having that being said the tree has obviously always been in the same location so would have reacted to additional stresses placed upon it. As others have said I don’t believe you would be justified in taking it down under exemption. A decent tree company would be able to carry out a site visit, assess the tree and submit the application on your behalf to council should works be required. Personally if I were asked to inspect the tree I would be looking to see how much sound wood is still present, the location of the tree (is the area overly exposed) and whether works such as reduction would make the defect tolerable. Weighing up these factors would then allow you to make an informed decision.

The lean looks to be historic from the picture. As others have said look for soil cracking and movement around the root plate as this will indicate an issue. Could it be that there may have been other larger trees behind the pine that have encouraged the lean? The crown clean that you mention wouldn’t have prevented the lean, a crown clean is there to remove deadwood, cross rubbing branches (that are providing natural bracing), ivy, foreign objects. A consideration as with all construction near trees, has there been any damage done to roots and was tree protection measures put in place and adhered to? Obviously the area has been landscaped (laid to lawn) but was any damage done to structural or fiberous roots in the process? The crown of the tree looks to be in good health from the picture supplied so if tree protection measures were put in place then they may have done their job on this occasion. Minor deadwood in pine trees is fairly natural. You say about asking the developer to have the tree surveyed. As ownership has passed to you I’m not sure they would entertain this. Ultimately if you are concerned about the tree and the consequence should it fail then it may be prudent to get a consultant to assess the tree and provide a report. If they recommend works then this report could be used as supplementary evidence to support the request.

That would be interesting to see. I’m in the South East and every other truck on the A2/A20 in the morning seems to have a chipper behind it. What would also be interesting to see is how the structure of firms have changed, for example there seems to be less of the three or four crew firms out there and lots of one man bands who all sub to each other and help each other out on bigger jobs that the larger firms used to do. I think this has been a byproduct of cheap finance and lots of freelance climbers bitting the bullet and buying trucks and chippers instead of just freelance climbing.

When we’ve had apprentices via Capel Manor before they have had an apprenticeship tutor/manager who used to come out and assess the candidates on-site. They also helped with the paperwork and compliance aspect of the course and how the apprentice interpreted into the business. They assisted with what we needed to do in terms of RAMS, supervision onsite, what the candidates could and couldn’t do, who could supervise them and also helping with complying their portfolio of evidence and coursework. Overall it was a very positive experience and I wonder if Sparsholt would have a similar person you could speak to, maybe worth a call.

As others have said on large reductions two climber’s of similar ability share the load. On dismantles, especially those using rigging I don’t often see the value in two climbers in the tree. I would say that I can think of a couple of occasions whereby a second climber has come up to flick the rigging line across on some wide poplars and a London plane with multiple targets as it was hard for the groundies to get the line back. On cut and chuck on wide topped connies it can be helpful to have a second climber up there to pass the stuff to so they can then throw it into the correct garden instead of it birds nesting up.

Unfortunately this is still very much still happening. Due to procurement rules it is often the cheapest price that wins, regardless of where they are from and whether or not they are ultimately the best contractor to undertake the works. Due to the nature of the contracts they are then allowed to sub the work out if they bite off more than they can chew which then looses the client even more control over the contract. But they get the work done for the cheapest price so it must be the best use of the money, surely?! No.

I certainly agree about keeping the costs low, that way it allows you to whether the storm better as you haven’t got larger monthly outgoings. I used to work for a small firm with three crews and the boss didn’t finance anything, it meant if things slowed down he was able to ride things out. He also did consultancy so had an alternative income as well. We’ve all seen it over the years when things drop off firms with significant exposure or limited order books drop the day rate which leads to a spiral to the bottom. A real balancing act between paying the bills, keeping the guys busy and making some profit. Sustainability. I also agree it will be good if things slow a little. Since covid things have been mad, people were at home spending money on their property which meant all trades were crazily busy and as a yet there hasn’t been a correction.

Given the size of the woodland (20 acres) and the amount of cattle (4/5) I would have thought any damage would be relatively small. The farmer near me has had issues with cows prematurely killing trees where they gather under them in a small woodland in one area of the grazing field. However for context this is a large herd with many, many years of using the same area of ground so the issues have built up over time. Coincidentally the water trough is near the trees and this seems to frequently overflow leading to the water collecting under the trees which the cows then tread in as they shelter from the rain. This has caused root damage to the trees and then decline in the canopies from the top down, no real surprise as the roots are suffering direct damage and water logging. I’ve personally seem worse damage from pigs, a smallholder close to me has some pigs that they breed and then butcher in time. These have caused no end of damage in the woodland to the ground and also the bases of the trees. The woodland is predominantly mature sweet chestnut with some lapsed coppice and over the last few years the trees have steadily been declining - again no real surprise.

I think this is the project in Blean (Nr Canterbury) between the Kent Wildlife Trust and the National Lottery. Looks like it is working and they are just starting to breed successfully.

Unfortunately I think a number of firms will be lost. In the last three or four years lots of one man bands have cropped up as people either got fed up with working for someone or decided they wanted a bigger slice of the pie. This has always happened, man leaves employment, goes subby climbing while he builds up some clients and gets a truck, chipper etc. This coupled with the amount of finance around has led to people starting up. Finance has never been so readily available or easy to access, you can even finance a rope and karabiner now let alone a £30k truck and £20k chipper, this has allowed lots to start up where as before they may not have had the cash in place to do so. I think the biggest change maybe that some go back to freelancing to the bigger firms if their own work dries up or they go back on the books at a firm. However if it really does slow down to that extent even the bigger boys may have to streamline and drop crews/lay guys off. There will always be council, highways, rail and commercial work where there is a duty of care but even councils are being squeezed trying to make the sums add up and put round pegs in square holes. The biggest drop off will be the residential market, if Mrs Miggins can’t pay the gas bill then the conifer hedge can wait until next year for a little trim and that reduction can wait. Therefore the firms that do almost all residential and little diversification will suffer. Variety and a mixed bag of clients will be key, those who have clients across the different areas, residential, commercial, council etc will probably whether the storm better imo.

I use a TM and I’ve got a 27in waist. As Joe says there is plenty of adjustment within the harness. I would say anything under 26in waist and the main strap across the waist wouldn’t really be tight enough.

I’ve got a mk1 550. I had an 18 on it to start with but tend to run the shortest bar on my saws. Changed it to a 16 with 3/8 and also got Spud to port it, now you have to hold on for dear life! For me the 16 is the best compromise and it’s a little ripper for chogging down when moving up from a 12 inch 200.

I did the L2 many years ago so the syllabus may have changed but if you are looking for information on tree inspections then documents such as the NTSG doc is what you need to look at https://www.forestresearch.gov.uk/documents/7075/FCMS024.pdf What is the exact question?

Impossible question to answer as everybody is different. What one climber will like another will detest. Best bet is to go along to Honey’s or Jones’s etc and try some on. I climbed on an American import harness for years before moving to a treemotion and they are at opposite ends of the spectrum. Try them on before you part with your cash

Flexi pace can be expensive in the first instance. However when you are re patching the same area on a regular basis there becomes a point where engineering solutions such as flexi pave work out more cost effective long term. It’s just the upfront cost that is often seen as a negative.

The L4 is a big undertaking, it’s possible to do it in under nine months but say goodbye to life as you know it! If you have L3 and experience it would be worth speaking with insurers to see if they are happy with that. If you go down the PTI route read up on fungi, p and d and survey techniques. Do some dummy surveys in a park, assess the trees using the same methodical manner and record the results and the works you would prescribe. I haven’t done the mortgage report writing course as it’s not an area I’m involved in but from speaking to others they have seen an uptake in this kind of work so depending on cost Vs return maybe worth doing. Recruiters such as Complete Tree Care often have part time surveyor roles so depending on where you are this may be worth looking into.

It will largely depend on how much surveying work you have done previously. PTI will obviously help but if you only have climbing experience you may find the PTI hard going. The AA do an intermediate tree inspection that bridges the gap between the basic tree inspection and the PTI. If you have done lots of quoting and some survey work this will help. I would be looking to do L4 if you haven’t already got something like the old tech cert or ND Arb. Although it isn’t a legal requirement to have these qualifications in order to get professional indemnity you will need more than NPTC’s to satisfy the underwriters. There are often jobs advertised for freelance surveyors for council contracts or for larger consultancies who need ad hoc help. Typically these may be surveying street of trees for a set price per tree. Not the most exciting work but gets you a foot in the door. With the building industry busy you may also get BS5837 work as well. A bit more info on your current qualifications and survey experience as well as location would help.

For me I think advances in techniques and equipment will mean that people can climb for a lot longer than say 15 years ago. It still makes me chuckle when I see people using a prussik with no cambium saver, to me that’s like parking the truck on the roadside and hand balling the timber when you can reverse up to the tree and chuck it in. A lot also has to do with your lifestyle and fitness. A lot of climbing is about strength and power to weight but also cardio fitness which is often overlooked. If you are doing a big beech thin and are in the tree for 6+ hours you need a decent cardio base to keep going. Personally I run marathons and race most long distances , as a result I run between 70 - 100 + miles a week, this gives a massive advantage when it comes to climbing. I’m also just over 9 stone so don’t have a lot of bulk to lug around which can be handy. There will be some instances where my size works against me, but the majority of the time it is of benefit and a lot of it is down to technique and working a tree in a smart methodical manner. I would assume that a business owner/operator will continue climbing later in their career as they can pick and choose jobs. Contract climbers probably have the shortest time frame as they are brought in to do all the big dirty stuff that others don’t want to or can’t do.

The older ones were as I understand it build on the 5 ton chassis. I used to drive a 63 plate one and that was a ‘wide cab model’ which was repeatedly built on the same chassis as a 5 ton cab. I’m not sure about the newer ones as they seem a lot lot smaller overall. When I parked the 63 plate next to a 7.5t there wasn’t much in it, the plus points were that it pulled like a train and looked like a bigger truck. So much so that VOSA didn’t take an interest in it as it always carried the weight well. The N35 stickers were removed when it was sign written and even when I dropped it into Isuzu for serving they always questioned what weight it was. However it weighed 3300kg empty so was potentially overloaded with 2 guys and some cones in the box!

Your system sounds similar to that of Valid developed by David Evans whereby it becomes acceptable, tolerable, not tolerable etc. Thing with trees, even those with ADB are all unique and what you do will depend on the targets and likelihood of failure. I’m just not too sure a score based system would work Vs a conventional survey. Many years ago an insurance company moved to a height system for tree removal pricing which a number of contractors ditched as the height didn’t take into account the actual work involved. For example you could get a 20ft oak at the bottom of a garden with a 1100mm dbh for a couple of hundred pounds and take four guys a day or more to deal with if access was poor. To counter that you could get a 50ft ash with a 300mm dbh and post it into the chipper. Swings and roundabouts I guess

Sure, appreciate that roots can impact the drop of pipe work thus causing further issues down the road. However in this instance given the size of the stem and overall tree size not sure it would be an issue here. But agree I would remove as I said to begin with.