agg221

Yes. I find mine very good and there are several threads on here where people rate them highly. Milling really does need every tooth sharp and even, which is a lot easier with the grinder. Alec

Mills and bars can be purchased from Rob D at chainsawbars.co.uk I would go with a 48" mill as it will do pretty much everything you run across. I would also go for a mini-mill for quartering logs. The saw will pull a long bar, but I would go for the 46" Sugihara as a start - it will give you around 38" capacity with the dogs on, 40 with the dogs off, which will deal with most things. It is a very rigid bar, which helps keep cuts straight. Don't forget you will also need ripping chains and the Granberg precision grinder is highly recommended for quickly sharpening long chains, maintaining even length and angle on the teeth. Alec

It's not a fuller - it's properly eyed and handled in a way that wouldn't be comfortable to use as a fuller. Alec

The curved end wasn't used for anything in particular - this used to be a standard pattern when tools were hand forged. Sometimes found on the railways, or for forging work, but could be anything really. If that was mine, I would be running a wire brush over the head to smooth out any deep pitting and make sure no cracks initiated from them. I would also have a good look to see if there was a distinct difference visible near the face of the head - it may be old enough to have a steel face welded to a soft iron head, and certainly may be old enough to have been forged and water quenched for hardening, in which case the body will be softer than the face. Alec

I think it's great when things are handed on to people as a true gift, in the belief that they will value them and take pleasure in them. I was given something once by a sort of customer, in that we used to sell fruit from our smallholding when I was growing up and we built up a regular base of local customers who used to walk past. I would have been around 15 at the time, so we had bought the place a couple of years before. My parents had no experience of fruit cultivation at all (they just wanted the garden space) so I took on the top fruit, which was mostly apples dating from a 1919 planting. There was an old gentleman who used to buy from us as he remembered the varieties we had from many years earlier. One day I happened to mention that my particular interest was cherries. A week or so later he turned up with 'Cherries' by Norman H.Grubb, and 'Plums' by H.V.Taylor, as a gift. I still value these books far more than the ones I have bought for myself since. If my children are interested then I will happily pass them on. If not then in due course I hope to pass them, and my other fruit books, on to someone else who will have a similar interest in them. Value isn't always measurable in pounds and pence. Alec

I use cheap emulsion paint. It doesn't make much odds to be honest, so long as it slows down drying through the ends. Alec

Sean, I will be interested to hear what you find. If 'Ancient Forest' is anything like 'Ancient Woodland' then it would mean a heavily managed environment, designed to grow a timber crop, so razing to the ground would not be incompatible with good management, but suspension of the FSC licence, if connected, would perhaps indicate a concern with the new management practice. Look forward to hearing more. Alec

This only tends to work from younger trees - you need the right ratio of sapwood. You are also better off cleaving them out as it shows up any twist in the grain. There doesn't seem to be much demand for yew in large boards (shame really as it would make someone an excellent floor!) but it is definitely worth considering milling it, particularly if the colour is good and there is some interesting grain. Might be worth dropping Slackbladder a pm. Alec

Or a Teles/Danarm 2-man and some 3/4" (if you can find any )

In an arable setting, the plants are deliberately killed off, mainly because you are then re-sowing and it reduces the need for a pre-emergent weedkiller (preferable on cost grounds but also because the type of farmer who is using green manures is usually trying to reduce reliance on chemical intervention. Plants which fix nitrogen through their roots on nodules will do so whether they are killed off at the end of a cycle or not - you can use clover for gradual nitrogen enrichment of a permanent sward, which may be beneficial in some circumstances, or use a nitrogen-fixing annual such as yellow trefoil. Similarly, deep-rooting annuals or biennials will break up soil compaction and then die, leaving roots which will break down leaving organic matter and air pathways through the soil, and organic matter on the top which will form a mulch, regardless of whether they are tilled in. If they set seed first then the cycle will repeat, which is what arable farming is seeking to avoid, but may not matter in the context of trees? There is definitely faster breakdown if the growth is cut before it hardens (important for annual crops, maybe not so for trees). Some species, such as buckwheat, can be killed simply by cutting once, or by frost, so if sown later in the year - August onwards really, will shade out aggressive weed growth. I agree that 'turning in' may defeat the point, but anything which can be killed by mowing, or dies out naturally, or is suitable for treating as a long-term underplanting may add value? The biggest disadvantage I can see potentially arising is the water uptake - in a year like this that wouldn't be a problem but in a drought year it could make a difference - I suppose a lot depends on location, soil type and whether the tree in question is deep rooting. It would be interesting to see if, correctly selected, you could get beneficial results. Alec

It is, but it can be a bit strong for a seedling, depending on what you've been consuming! Also helps to keep the deer off. Alec

David, under the general heading of the thread I was interested in whether you had any awareness of the use of green manures for root zone amelioration? It's a growing subject of interest (if you'll forgive the pun) in arable agriculture - various voices are beginning to suggest that simply churning the top nine inches of soil over each year by ploughing may not be the best, or cheapest option and building up the soil structure is a better move. There is a move towards specific planting to do this, depending on the aim, using either catch-cropping between main crops and mown/harrowed off, or as an under-planting. This includes a range of different species, with different functions such as nitrogen fixing, smothering out invasive species or sowing deep rooting species to break up soil compaction. Compared with an airspade or a dose of fertilizer it is obviously very slow, and you would need the right site for it where the visual impact was acceptable for the species selected, although some nitrogen fixers such as red or white clover also make a good cover planting which may be generally aesthetically acceptable. The main advantages would seem to be that it is non-invasive, very quick and cheap (things I am looking at are around £30-60/hectare which would do a lot of drip zones!). Has it been tried, and if so any known results? Alec

Hi Owain, First point - the mill size is the length of the side rails, rather than the maximum capacity of the mill. The throat is 2" less than the maximum length. The mill clamps to the bar at both ends and you have to fit it inside the nose (unless you fit spacers over the nose sprocket, which is not recommended practice due to reduced clamping area, although it has been seen to work successfully). Even if you take the dogs off, the widest timber you can get through the throat of the mill on a 36" bar is around 30". To get the full capacity out of a 36" mill (34") you need a 42" bar. You can get a 32" bar in a D009 mount but you may well need to bring it in from somewhere outside the UK (try ebay for a start). The saw should cope OK - it won't be the quickest but if you keep the chain absolutely even it will be OK. I would go for Granberg chain and the grinder - the chain takes a bit less power out of the saw than standard chain, which helps when you haven't got the .cc to play with, and the grinder will keep the teeth absolutely identical in length and angle which makes an enormous difference. If you also have a 24" bar, I would buy a ripping chain to go with that too as it will be very efficient (and quick) for up to 18" width. I would then tend to break down larger logs by quartering first, then quartersawing, as it gives better quality timber and means you only need to make one wide cut per log. Alec

Ah, I'd missed that particular change - I always knew it as P.pissardi. I wish botanists would just make up their minds though (been ploughing through the elms lately which make the challenge of keeping up with prunus pale into insignificance ) Alec

Cherry plum is myrobalan. Was the tree planted in the raised bed, or was the bed raised over the tree roots? The latter may account for it. Alec

I would have had that down as prunus pissardi rather than a myrobalan? Either way, it's not a cherry. Regardless, yes you could kill a tree but it isn't easy without clearly visible signs, using things which the average person without a licence could get their hands on. What is the ground underneath like - if it's grass, how is it doing? Alec

1948 Teles 2-man. Most of the saws I actually use are 1960s/70s (milling) or 1990s. My most modern saw is a 2003 026. Alec

I should add that I was given the Allen Scythe in question by Geoff, with full warning of what it would do, and I do get a certain masochistic pleasure out of using it It is also ultra-reliable, will tolerate serious abuse and is always there as back-up. It's a 2-stroke and runs very nicely on Aspen. At least on the model I have the clutch is pulled up to engage - I believe there is a brilliantly designed one with a fail-dangerous feature, where if the clutch lever drops down out of the gate it sets off on its own! Alec

Bit of a trek, but if you're heading North from there I can take anything arising at the northern edge of Essex (CB9). Alec

One thing from experience - don't buy an Allen Scythe unless you are a masochistic dwarf powerlifter. They are old but they work fantastically well. They are really simple to fix and you can still get all the parts. They are cheap. But - they have a deathwish, they head for the nearest pond/barbed wire fence/small child and they are not designed for people of average height. I am of slightly above average height and use one once or twice a year to cut some of ours - it has gone straight through 7' thistles, and nettles which are chest high without missing a beat. The only thing which stops it is when it sucks a whole nettle down the air intake! It has even been flooded once, dried out and still runs, but cutting about 2/3 of an acre takes me three goes of about 20mins each and each time I come in pouring with sweat and collapse on the floor with back pain, having wrestled and fought it all the way. I would also avoid Monro-tillers - the chatter bar cutter (scythe bar) is driven off an eccentric and the drive arm is a weakpoint - we broke 3 before we gave up. Alec

Here it is. Tape is around it as a couple of dead branches snapped and are hung up in there - I think there is discussion underway with regard to removing some of the branches which are shutting down before the work gets done. Alec

Hi Graham, The tree in my avatar is also an elm - there is a row of three of this form which have survived, despite the ones on the opposite side of the road regularly burning up with elm disease when they hit 15ft. To propagate elm trees there are three ways: The easiest is to trace suckers back to the roots (often very easy as they sucker from big roots near the trunk). Suckers should have the beginnings of a root system already in place. Nick them off when dormant, plant up outside and keep sufficiently watered while the root system develops. Second approach is hardwood cuttings taken in late Jan/early Feb. Plant in a 50 : 50 peat : perlite or vermiculite : perlite mix and keep it somewhere cold, such as the north face of a building, but with a soil heating mat or cable to keep the base at 18degC. This develops roots before the top. Most difficult is softwood cuttings in late May, before the shoots have fully grown for the year. Cut at a leaf joint from a good, stiff, upward or sideward (but not downward) facing bit, then nick off the lower leaves completely, cut the upper leaves in half but leave the last one full. You then need to put them in a similar vermiculite : perlite mix in a dewpoint cabinet. Take rate is very low, but rooting is very quick if they do take. There is a tentative plan hatching to run a proper disease resistance trial on surviving trees. This is what the Spanish did, and managed to identify a handful of truly resistant trees which they are now in the final stages of testing on multiple sites before considering going forward for mass propagation. If this goes anywhere for the UK, it would be very interesting to include your tree. It would need half a dozen or so plants to do it. If the tree has suitable small suckers (definitively from this tree) or some suitable shoots in Jan when they could safely be posted, I would be very interested in some to take forward for this. Alec

That's the one - it is looking way better this year. I'll take a picture tomorrow but the canopy is now full and the tree looks good. We have a new facilities manager who is more likely to take up some of your comment. Alec

Thanks David & Tony, I will mention it to the relevant people then at some point out of courtesy, but try to avoid panicking them into an excessive response. Cheers Alec

I have some feedback from the person who runs resistantelms.co.uk - he previously ran the Kentish Elm Conservation Programme which carried out maintenance to preserve surviving trees. Comments were as follows (my comments are in brackets): There is a reasonable chance that surviving trees show some resistance, or are unattractive to beetles - it isn't just luck. If it's disease resistance then great, they are likely to survive attack anyway, but resistance is not all or nothing - the more beetles that go for a tree at once, the higher the dose of disease and the more chance the tree will die, so the aim is to minimise the attack. Beetles are active from April to September (the trees also bleed) so prune only when the tree is fully dormant. The beetles are attracted by the smell of the cut surfaces, so keeping the cuts to a minimum is a good idea. Also, whatever you do, burn, don't chip - the chippings will attract in every beetle for miles around! Similarly, remove any cut timber from site, otherwise the beetles which hatch out will just fly back up into the tree (I suppose you could chip, be scrupulously careful about removing every bit of chipping from site and make sure they are buried in the chip pile by the time spring comes around). The beetles also prefer vigorous young growth. This means that when pruning it is best to discourage epicormic growth from breaking, so a crown thin and gently phased work would be better than going in hard. There is some thought that beetles don't like short trees (if this is the case then a full on re-pollard may not be a bad thing). Charlie - interesting information on the single tree. There is a surviving large elm at Acton's Farm, Sawbridgeworth, which shows the same weeping habit. It is reckoned to be Ulmus x hollandica, but there is a lot of genetic diversity in this type and it is possible that they are either directly related or coincidentally resistant. Alec