sloth

They're lovely, the ash doesn't have enough character for my liking, but probably more salable to the general house proud public! Re price the ash has got be 50-60, the yew more. Up to 80/90 maybe, a real feature on a wall Surely you could play on/market the home grown/sustainable/locally sourced and produced aspect; I think that appeals to a certain kind of 'ooh look at what I bought' well off trendy house wife!

They all look great. Particularly like the bench with a back...

Makes a lot of sense, thank you

Maybe a bit of an odd one, my wife and I disagree about how light affects plant growth. I think a seed growing with shorter days will grow taller than a seed growing with longer days while it still has energy in the seed store, then growth will simply slow down; due to less light, giving a plant of x height after a month. She thinks the seed with longer, brighter days wouldn't need to put energy into growing tall in search of light, and so would be thicker and bushier but shorter after a month than 'x'. I reckon it's light intensity rather than hours of light which affect plant height. Before I ramble anymore, what say ye?

Ah, very good stuff

Umm, ok...

It's no problem, and yes that is sounding right Now for more than 5 stems, technically you should add the diameter of all stems and then divide by the number of stems, this gives the MEAN diameter. Square this (multiply it by itself) and then multiply by the number of stems. Then get Mr calculator to find the square root of this figure = bingo. However, this is highly impractical and neigh on impossible on some coppice stools for example. In which case use your best judgement to guess the mean average stem diameter and number of stems, then proceed as above. In reality this is what I would probably do unless it was a category A tree. Clear as mud?

How strange, be very interested to see what it looks like come Monday

Should have gone with my intial id instead of over thinking it! Cheerd guys

...please put me out of my misery!

Arborist your box is full too! Regarding multi stem calcs: I have software now that does the hard work for me, but I'll try. Probably do me good to think it through again! Firstly get to know the 'square root' button on your calculator. 2-5 stems is easy: Take diameter of stem 1 then square it (eg 100mm X 100mm = 10,000) and jot it down. Then diameter of stem 2, same again, stem 3 etc. You should then have 2-5 large numbers, add them together and ask your calculator nicely to work out the square root of their total. This is your new dbh measurement, simples. More than 5 stems is an odd one: I'll double check it and get back to you. In any case be careful not to waste time on it if it's worth minimum marks on the day. My biggest piece of advice is spend your first five minutes reading the questions and working out where the marks are to be had. Split your time accordingly, like 1/2 your time on a big question with 1/2 the total marks, and 1/4 the last two questions. Also remember you don't have to do the questions in order. When I did it the last question was something like list all arb operations that might be in a 5837 method statement, and construction activities which might affect a meth statement. It was worth big marks so I rattld out a list first, then did the survey, and went back to it at the end when the survey had jogged my memory. If it's quicker just note down the equations from the standard to show you know it and move on to a question with more/easier marks. Passing the management day is as much about exam technique as knowing your onions.

M giganteus here living up to its name. I've seen more of it this year than the last 2 or 3 combined! This is Oak Tree Corner, I never knew the original tree or when/why it was felled, the tree you see is a replacement which has been present for at least 5 years. In those five years of very regular passing I've never seen Meripilus fruiting here before. I seem to remember from Gerritt's posts that Meripilus needs live wood to fruit. If that is the case, and assuming I've not just missed past fruiting, is it possible the fungi has been happily digesting a dead stump and now has access to the live roots of the replacement; enabling fruiting? Just a thought. On another note I saw today a roadside beech stump which was felled by my old company 3 or 4 years ago as it had die back. At the time there were no fruit bodies of anything, today it was rife with merip, 1/3 of its circumference covered in kretz and a few ganos between the buttresses: a timely fell I reckon!

No close ups I'm afraid, just out reach. The slices shall for now remain, and I dont when I'll next be passing this one. It's well outside my normal neck of the woods. ..

Hi all, just putting the feelers out to see if anyone near colchester has any smallish native/unusual bits of seasoned wood available. I'm not after a large quantity. Just a few bits and pieces to try and encourage my father in law to get back into wood turning/trinket making as a hobby again as I've seen his old work and it is very good (and maybe to supplement his stringed instrument repair business; incidentally, if any one needs strings/repairs/rebuilds etc he's your man. Colchester Strings, in west Bergholt) He's not physically able to manage or store large boards so I'm after prices for small boards/useful off cuts suitable for little bowls, shrooms, rattles etc. About a meter or two cube of mixed bits would be ideal. Cheers

Caterpillars long gone here. The radish took a beating but quantity planted meant I still got s good few. As for the masses of kale planted then decimated, well a small number look as though they may provide a little something after all. ..

Looks like there has also been groundwork at some point. Still, if the tree is vigorous enough (which willow generally is!) a fell seems a shame if the owners like the tree. A replacement would be a loooong time getting to that size. Surely worth initiating a pollard cycle?

David you might remember this one from last year, it had a decent rack of Laetiporous and rather plump Resinaceum down low. This year no resi and the laeti is smaller and slightly higher, though in the same vertical alignment. This year there are two small Fistulina present too, one at ground level and one up next to the laeti. It looks as though the pore layer on the fisti has not fully developed, has anyone come across this symptom on an annual fungi before? I'd imagine the fisti is struggling for territory in the battle with the more aggressive laeti and resi, what say ye? Be interesting to slice and dice this one, if a crying shame to fell it!

Any ideas what this little beastie may turn out to be?

I could get all materials delivered for 125, then an easy days work on my own, so 150 would see me happily in profit. Total of less 275. By that logic, his sketchy behaviour and extreme arsiness when asked for a break down of costs just screams out con artist to me.

Gets worse, just found out my grandmother in law was going to be handing over £800 in cash today before work started! Sheister! Trading standards, or watchdog, may be getting a call next...

Turns out she thought he was ok as he was in the parish magazine, does trees, fencing, roofing, pressure washing, driveways, you know the sort... though no names mentioned It measured at just under 8m. He hadn't made panels (after telling her he had), said materials cost 400 and then 400 for labour. I asked how many men/days and was told just him for one day. I told him to shop elsewhere for materials and not to bother her again. My local fencing supplier will do me everything including postcrete, nails etc for £100, and I'll do it for a supply of coffee and a roast dinner one weekend. Bargain! Cheers fellas

Well that is a good price! Shame you're not closer

£200 for labour plus materials on top? I had a quick tally up on Jacksons fencing and I could all materials and fixings/cement etc delivered for just ovef £300. This guys original price was nearly £900. I don't know how much he has dropped it by now. Very suspect to me...

Or even just a quick and painless mercy killing...

Thats my thoughts, shes been ripped off in the past too agreeing to works from door knockers. Makes my blood boil. It will be interesting to see what he drops off later...