David Humphries

Acer platanoides

Fagus sylvatica

Aesculus hippocastanum

Whilst out inspecting today I came across (what is for me) a new host tree association for R. ulmarius. Quercus ilex Oddly (even with the demise) I don't think I've actually seen it on Elm which is where it gets its name from. I'll list below the other trees I've seen the association with and will add to it if anyone has any others? Aesculus hippocastanum Fagus sylvatica Acer platanoides Acer campestre Sambucus nigra Quercus x hispanica Quercus ilex Acer negundo - (AT member Kveldssanger) Acer psuedoplatanus - (AT member Kveldssanger) Poplus spp - (AT member Kveldssanger) (and me, forgot we'd felled one with Rigi on) Tilia x europea - (AT member Betula) Salix spp - (AT member Ben R)

Been putting it around on t'web on various groups so will see if that opens up any doors of interest. Couldn't help me self with the name drop as after spending the day with 60 Arbs at Sherwood the day before, it was a real pleasure to host Ted for the day and have an intimate walk around my gaff looking at tree and fungi association. We've been talking about it for a few years so was literally buzzing yesterday.

Out on bimble around Hampstead Heath with Kveldesvanger & Ted Green yesterday looking at me trees and fungi when I spotted this gall on the pore surface of a Rigidoporous ulmarius bracket on a horse chestnut. Been looking at literature but not found any fly, wasp or beetle listed as a having a particular association with this fungal species.

Probably, I wouldn't rule it out but too far off to be sure Any closer images?

Had an interesting trip up to Sherwood forest yesterday, hadn't been there for about 10 years and didn't really give it justice when I was there last time. Got up there early before an AA field day and took a look at the Fomes colonisation to compare against the host range at Hampstead. Vast majority of the fruit bodies were on birch, although I did find some on a single dead young oak (image 3). But unlike Hampstead there were no fruitbodies (at all) on the ancient/veteran oaks. This suggests that climate and time play a large part in colonisation of age & species dynamics. Also, where there were fruiting bodies of both Fomes & Piptoporus on a single wood volume, the Fomes brackets were more abundant than Pipto. Suggests to me that Fomes (even though its deemed to have a sapwood exposed strategy) would appear to be a more dominant coloniser than Pitoporus (which has a sapwood intact stratergy)

Axe cuts certainly produce more bud development than chainsaw cuts from the experiments that I have seen Pat. This one below from 10 years ago in the Basque was axe cut left side & chainsaw on the right.

Likewise mate, keep in touch as it would be great to have you back on board for the pollard work again next year.

I'll have a look through my files Matty, but fairly sure that its only been witnessed where we have initiated long fracture strips. Coronets by themselves usually don't have enough exposed cambium.

I have a worrying knack of being able to catalogue my images and knowing where I've used them across the forum, but often can't remember where I've put me car keys down !

Additionally we're starting to find shoots developing on other 'sacrificed' trees where tears have been encouraged to see if the shoots can develop on light orientated branches.

Couple of years on and the epicormic clusters are still viable and growing toward the light.

Arbtalk member 'Dendrophile' (Rob Taylor) has just finished with us and is heading back to Copenhagen. It's been a great 12 months with a variety of interesting tree work. The Hampstead Tree Team wish Rob all the very best with his next Arboricultural Adventure. Photo montage of some of his working highlights below..... We'll be looking to fill the vacancy & replace Rob some time in the Spring.

Working over at Burnham Beeches currently and we came across this dual decay on birch again today, this time with the added colonisation of Daedaleopsis confragosa thrown in for good measure.

Not Really Gary, as the limbs were probably too exposed to light. I didn't carry the experiment on as I should have and only have experience of the successful ones that I saw in the Basque on beech trees in 2009 & 2017.

Ha, not that hungry ! Apparantly good eating, but not one I've fancied eating.

Lepista nuda (wood blewit) on bark mulch at work this morning

So after last weeks Catalan Arborist working with the team over at Burnahm Beeches, we now have an Arb from Belgium on a one week work placement. Today he helped by reducing back limbs on a veteran English oak which has a colonisation by Fomes fomentarius.

Skatepark shoe tree

Saw this one on the way up to Malham cove a few years back.

Vultures and kites in the Basque country

Roadside veteran beech pollard that we reduced by high line three years ago due to extensive Kretzschmaria & Ganoderma colonisations and associated soft & white rot. Even with a very thin residual wall the tree has put on a lot of extended regrowth over the last three growing seasons and required another cut. We set up the ultra static high line again on a couple of adjacent oak and beech maidens. Rob (#Dendrophile) in the saddle on his last climb with us before heading back to Denmark on a new adventure. We're hoping this second cut will limit the apical growth and stimulate extension in the lower stunted epicormic shoots.

Currently on our 12th annual week trip to Burnham Beeches to help manage the very old lapsed beech pollards. This year we have a friend from Catalonia joining the team to help us with the work. We met Oriol in the Basque last year whilst working on the pollards there and invited him over to see how we do things here. Wednesday saw us host a field day for Arborists & Ecologists to have a look at the work and discuss the management and condition of the trees. Mixed views ranging from doing too much reduction to not enough. The most interesting point was how variable the growth conditions for old beech trees are across the South & East of the UK. What you can get away with at one site doesn't necessarily mean you can duplicate that as a prescription at different sites with differing climate & soils even from a relatively local UK perspective.