woodyguy

All fair comment but I would be very careful. As mentioned, clay soils that shrink are much more of a problem and the type of foundations you have will also affect safe distance. I previously had a big weeping willow 10m from my house and the insurance company weren't happy and neither were the various viewers when we came to sell. I agree that less than 25m is safe if kept an eye on, but many of those you've planted are going to cause problems in the future, especially when you come to sell. I then had to remove it before I could sell.

Remember that not everybody who has a right to register land may wish to take up that right as it carries responsibilities. Us and the neighbouring 4 houses have a strip of land along the bottom of our gardens. We have rights of access over it. But it has large trees and borders a railway line. So registering that land would then carry responsibilities for the trees. So we leave it unregistered, exercise our rights but the railway company maintains the trees. Best of both worlds. I suspect that there must be lots of bits of land like this, often blocked in that were never claimed.

Paul, having visited the amazing Oak forest to the North of the auvergne this summer, I know what you have there. In that they have the biggest oak forest in Europe and grow on a 200 year cutting cycle!!! In the UK we have american oak mildew which weakened oaks and stops them regenerating within oak woods. In France the light is stronger and I was awe struck by just how densely the oak saplings grow. In the Auvergne they go through first with a bill hook at about 10 year old and cut 90% of them off at waist height. How they walk through and keep track of where they are I don't know as they are about 6 inches apart. Then again in 10 years they go through with a chain saw and cut to about a 2 metre spacing. Eventually after 100+ years they end up with large oaks perhaps 30-40 feet apart that then mature at 200 years. As they have produced oak commercially for building since early 19th century and the whole massive forest is divided into 1km squares all of it managed like this, I suspect they know a thing or two about oak growing.

Interesting question. The birch and oak means that it was probably clear felled some years back and has self-regenerated ie nothing planted. Because it is an isolated fragment it will be very slow for extra species to establish. If your kids wish to play in it then brambles are a good thing to get rid of. At this time of year, get a bill hook, a thick pair of gardening gloves and remove them. If you pull on them, the roots are fairly lose at this time, and you can cut through them with a bill hook. The new shoots are a pretty pink and you will remove the whole plants. Yes don't remove them all, but most for the kids to play. Get an old bill hook off ebay not the modern rubbish that don't hold their edge. You can also use this to cut back the few that get away or you leave. As to new species, you will need to plan what you wish to plant. Buy a few Tubex tree guards, 75cm long with stake off ebay. Go to cheviot trees for small quantities of alder, field maple, hornbeam, hazle, wild cherry, sweet chestnut, beech and small leaved lime. All of these will establish if you thin the birch a little. Look at the oaks and remove those that are crowded or crossed or deformed. You are aiming to produce trees that will be good to live with for the next 50 years+. So decide your management plan, but it may well include increasing the range of species, making it more fun for the kids and planting a succession for when the birches will all die from old age. Have fun and feed back. Please feel free to ignore any of this, but I've got the same challenge for a 7 acre wood of birch and oak so I have given this some thought and even a little experience.

It simply says where the local planning authority give the applicant notice that such prior approval is required the applicant shall display a site notice by site display on or near the land on which the proposed development is to be carried out, leaving the notice in position for not less than 21 days in the period of 28 days from the date on which the local planning authority gave the notice to the applicant; (ii)where the site notice is, without any fault or intention of the applicant, removed, obscured or defaced before the period of 21 days referred to in sub-paragraph (i) has elapsed, he shall be treated as having complied with the requirements of that sub-paragraph if he has taken reasonable steps for protection of the notice and, if need be, its replacement;

Don't see why if it's been over 28 days that you can't get on with it. They had their chance and missed it!

I'd also spend a few minutes calculating the volume. 5m3 or timber in small sizes is a hell of a lot. You only need to measure the usable height as well, so it he is milling, that won't be that long. I bet he could fell an awful lot of these at the end of March and beginning of April ie 10m3

Rover, that sounds a highly perilous approach. Yes dead wood doesn't count in the amount. But that doesn't apply to stuff you're just in the process of killing. The actual wording is "This exemption will only apply if there is a real rather than a perceived danger. We may be able to give you advice that would minimise the danger without felling the trees. We strongly recommend that you contact us if you are considering felling a tree or trees in these circumstances. You may be prosecuted for illegal felling if it is shown that the tree did not present a real or immediate danger. "

Couldn't find the feature film clip I was thinking of but this gives you an idea. Sorry they're wearing trainers but you get the idea. [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=89h7nadBSz0]2012 Basque country's axemen final championship 2-4 - YouTube[/ame]

Respect as you say. His technique is interesting. Uses a very long bar for what he's cutting and stands well back sighting along the bar with shallow cuts until he establishes the line. The bare feet made me cringe. Not as much though as the Basque axe cutters in the Pyrenees who cut through 16 inch beech logs standing on it between their feet with bare feet.

Do we really believe that people only get squirrels in their loft if they have trees abutting their house wall. Squirrels are quite good climbers of drainpipes etc. Serious question- do squirrels get into your loft by other means than trees?

Would you call that a pollard? Its just a reduction isn't it? I'd prefer to see it properly pollarded, but I'm not the client (and I like pollards)

We had a case recently and the 12 year unopposed possession was what counted. If you've enjoyed access to it and fenced it off then it could be yours!

Surely squirrels are wild animals so no one land owner can be responsible for them (unless he was breeding them and releasing etc).

Exactly. I enjoyed driving my Disco. I just had to drive it to all of those Landrover specialist work shops you mention very frequently. Having run 3 toyotas in the past 10 years I've never spent a penny on any of them outside servicing. That's reliability. Landrover = great design product appallingly put together.

Of course the people who know about car reliability are Which? They rate all cars made. So a Porsche Boxter gets 94% rating. Guess which is bottom. Yes Landrover, which is so bad that they don't give it a figure. Alone amongst all makes they say "very unreliable". When I had a disco I found that the third engine it had was probably the best one, but then I sold it so hard to say how long that particular engine lasted.

So that's 30 compressions, then how many with the Swiss army knife?

Cut a 60 year old one back to the ground 5 years ago. Grows much better now. Indestructable.

The correct tune now is Staying Alive from Saturday Night Fever. More up to date than Nellie the Elephant (but not much!)

Vinnie Jones is the best!! Kissing is for the Mrs, so chest compressions only is fine.

"No part of a tree has "channels", they have vessels (angiosperms) or Tracheids (gymnosperms) for fluid transport!" Oxford English dictionary Channel - biology - a tubular passage for liquids Vessel - Botany - any of the tubular structures in the vascular system of a plant, serving to conduct water and mineral nutrients from the root.

Thanks for link. Can read the short abstract but the rest is hidden behind a paid fire wall, as so often the case. Frustrating!

Thanks for posting this. Interesting and explains why many non related trees like say beech and hornbeam can produce superficially very similar looking plants. I just find it annoying when they write up science for dummies in a very simplistic way and don't even give the reference for the original study so that you can read the whole thing.

I did my personal fire wood for years with a bow saw. But also burnt coal. Now moving over to wood entirely, you just won't get the volume done unless you spend forever on it. Might be easier with smaller diameter stuff though. I enjoyed by hand and it kept me fit but if you need several tons then a small chainsaw seems a no brainer. Might be different somewhere that wasn't -2C and snowing outside!!

That's interesting about mulching. General advice is to plant through woven textile to control weeds if possible. I'm about to plant some this way so will be interested to see if the same happens. Have you not considered adding hybrid poplar to your trial?