devon TWiG

I was half expecting a reference to the infamous "codwood" !!!! apparently the Council are concerned about fishermen drowning ..... it seems the fishermen are less concerned , and will they wear them ? Perhaps motorcyclists can get top of the range Arai helmets ....the whole thing just came across as bizzare to me ...

In my regional newspaper today was an article about Plymouth City Council have obtained £77k from the EU to buy and provide top of the range lifejackets for local commercial fishermen ...... really not sure why they feel it is their responsibility to provide them , perhaps treeworkers can get free Pfanners !!!

Are you sure he has not just puked in to it ??? !!! ( jesting)

I have topped a few Yew hedges and Western Red Cedar over many years and they regrow from pruning points .... Leylandii and Lawsons do not, however Leylandii is very resistant to decay and to maintain a hedge it is also wise to always trim BOTH sides as well or every time some one has to top again it is wider than before which makes it harder work .... do a hedge well and you will probably get called back again ......it is bread and butter work for most arborists and I have done loads over the years , I would not say I enjoy it but there is plenty of work to be had doing it !!!

A typical ( private ) customer does not produce a contract / specification of works ....so each individual company are quoting for the exact same thing , you may find that the winning contractor will not spend time avoiding shrubs or damaging the lawn etc etc and advise the client that leaving the wood in situ will save her plenty of money , doing this is not about low standards but proposing a more cost effective solution to the client ., also some times the winning quote has just got it wrong and underestimated the job by mistake ...we have all done it I am sure !!

Planning an exit strategy is a bit hard because you may not be in charge of your own destiny ....are you now where you "planned " to be 5 -10 years ago ?? Some time ago I did a lot of studying for the RFS Prof Dip to possibly move in to management of some sort but really could not see myself in an office environment ... so many things can be out of your control , financial , health , personal circumstances can throw any plans out of the window .....I stopped climbing full time when I was 43 -44 not because I could not do it any more I just did not want to... I do a few days now and then ,sometimes a full week or more , I drive a lorry part time as well now and really like the combination of the two , as well as my woodturning work , and other arty / craft interests . I also own 4 acres of woodland where I can play when I feel like it and I spend as much time on various hobbies and interests as I can , so have not fully "exited " the industry , I do not want to as I still really like it but the level of tedious bureaucracy and petty rules will be the cause of my ceasing professional work ..

Didymus ......if you have been out of the industry for 15 years then you will find that there is much , much more kit to choose from now and it is nearly all good ( far better then 15 years ago ) the best stuff is not cheap but is that not always the case ? I wear stihl x lite trousers which are very light and not too hot either but they are type A , type C will be heavier and hotter and more restrictive especially if you are wearing waterproofs on top as well ...as for boots then go to a show or dealer and try some on , they are available in a wide variety of styles and colours ( be sure they do not clash with your trouser colour though !! ha ha ) it is very hard to tell though compared to working in them for weeks

Well I just swept my chimney today , first time in 2 years and there was a half bucket full of soot , so I suppose if every house produced this much ,as well as what has gone in to the atmosphere then it could be an issue I guess !! Even with the most up to date stove there will be smoke whilst lighting it and if it is used incorrectly with the wrong fuel etc etc ..... No doubt neighbours in some areas will make grossly exaggerated claims of suffering ,and the industry will see an opportunity to make more money with new stoves , filters , kiln dried logs only etc etc .

I have used sections of wood that straddle the union for woodturning and it gave a very interesting effect to the finished piece ...see pics ...

Tell him he also needs to pour concrete in the fork as well to glue it together ....

The rules are imposed upon commercial operators to ensure that one company does not gain a commercial advantage over another in a competitive market eg overloading , excessive hours etc , for caravans etc this is not a problem generally , and although VOSA do not concern themselves too much with caravans etc if / when something happens the insurers will look very hard indeed to avoid paying out !!

No they will not exceed their driving hours ( 9 per day , up to 10 hours 2x a week , extra break required , 90 hours per fortnight ).... however whilst at work on site the driver will need to leave the tacho setting on "other work " (cross hammers ) and the working time directive comes in to play here , half hour break within 6 hours work , including driving ... also if your driver finishes late then he must have a minimum daily rest overnight of 9 hours , before he can drive again the next day , similar sort of regulation with weekly rest periods ( weekends ) ... if you are driving a 7.5 t and towing in excess of 750 kg then you will need C+E ( class 1 ) and CPC ..... bloody complex all this regulations stuff !!

Caravan depending on direction it fell !

Leggy and patchy , yet healthy foliage , some major deadwood

In a woodland near me are 2 Oaks about 70 - 80 ft tall ,2ft dia with no bark for about 80% of their circumference at waist height they are both alive and guessing by the difference of thickness of live section with bark the damage appears to have happened perhaps 20 years ago ? .My best guess is fire damage , but not really sure , now although they are alive I am unable to give owner any indication as to stability at present and in the future , they are tall , spindly crowned specimens , am I correct to assume that only the roots on the side with some live tissue are providing most of the stability ? ...see pics ...

Not exactly conventional arboriculture but ,recently had a job for a woodland owner ...a 70ft Beech, 30" dia ( with kretzschmaria ) the tree is quite close to a quiet road so could not be left but he did not want a gap in the roadside screen , so after looking at it , and the way a small (lopsided ) secondary crown appears to be developing from a low branch I opted to reduce to this point ( about 10 ft ) .....first job with new ms661 was climbing with it !...I envisage the remaining foliage creating a new ,smaller crown and the main stem , already decayed becoming hollow and in a few decades becoming an old characterful specimen .... see pics below ...last one showing extent and clear zoning of decay at 10ft of main stem ...

You can't really thin or deadwood trees from a MEWP .....so if I had one I would always suggest that the tree needs reducing !! ha

Of course MEWPS are better on some jobs ,but ....do they save what they cost ? eg if you hire one in and it is say £200 for a day and a certified operator is required ( training required ) and it only saves a half day of climbing then it is not really cost effective is it .....owning one has considerable costs also , and it is up to the individual to determine / analyse costs for each job .

I kind of get what you mean .... can I assume you will not be going over as a" volunteer " to tidy up the storm damaged trees in their gardens then ? If you do I would like a slightly storm damaged boat if going cheap ! I suspect there will be a healthy trade in new boats / insurance claims anyway ...

That almost perfectly describes TOTNES !!!! ( except for the early starts )

I think the Forsythia is quite common with this disorder and often encouraged / cultivated for the flower arranging fraternity ...

The arb/ forestry industry is not the natural home of "sensitive " types , and I am sure most do not intend to offend but are perhaps lacking in eloquence of grammar , also things written may come across quite differently than the poster intended . I myself am of the old school of tree work ( I am also old- 56 !!) and chuckled when a member on here some time ago stated that he needed all the latest gadgets , ropes , climbing kit etc etc as he needed to earn an income to pay mortgage etc etc and it could not be done without it .... strange , I managed to pay off mortgage etc years ago using "basic " kit ...polyprop rope , prussik loops , home made spikes ( no srt ) or £200 helmets and I used to keep my climbing kit in a fertiliser sack when I started , however I was not offended by his opinion I just laughed to myself ... but to be fair my house was only 24K ( years ago )... Some people just have opinions ,and are free to state them , but they are just that ...opinions ...Does every one on here whilst sharing a truck cab to and fro site have the same opinions on the best way to do a job , the best boots ,kit , climbing system ( as long as it is safe ) etc or do do you fall out ? .. A very important part in being in a team is the ability to get on with others . There do seem to be some notable absences from here now though ....

So very , very posh CORKS then !! lol nice way to use small bits of wood

Are they very , very posh file handles ?? the last one is a lovely crotch ....I like a nice crotch ...especially a smooth one !!!! Nice work , keep it up ... I will be in the shed a lot more soon ( summer is for outdoor stuff ) so will post a few finished pieces soon-ish

Best not to mill wood this time of the year really !!! but PVA works as well as anything else , and it is water based so easy to clean brushes , I acquired quite a few nice blocks of HC burr recently ( about 12 , 15" cubes ) and I have wrapped them in pallet wrap / clingfilm which will reduce drying and will help induce a bit of spalting until I get around to using them .