Chris at eden

I see where you are coming from but I don't personally think so or if it is not a very good one. The shedding of small diameter braches in winds to save the tree yes. But this is half the tree and has left a large wound that will never occlude in a soft wooded tree. This tree is doomed sooner or later.

Its a co-dominant stem failure. The equal size of both leaders means there are no over lapping fibres to keep the branch in place when loaded. Normal branches are enclosed by the larger trunk material. This one also has a lean which introduces a static load into the fork and increases the effect of dynamic loading from the weather. You can actually see how the branch has twisted as it came down giving an indication of the load. Was there heavy rain when it failed?

It kinda looks like damage you would get on a smaller tree if you left the stake on too long which caused abrasion as it moved in the wind. Is this possible. Judging by the size of tree it really would have been left on for a while. Just a thought.

I would agree with this assessment 100%. It is not current industry best practice to add anything to the planting pit it unless there is a specific need for it such as the heavy clay mentioned in the other post. The decomposition of organic matter can use up oxygen to compete with the root system. Also, at some point the trees will have to get used to their new environment. May as well start early. If think you could employ the same logic for putting fym onto a woodland. Its not natural so probably not good for the ecosystem.

Bleeding canker on horse chestnut is one of the biggies at the moment. Lot of tree surgeons say fell but if you can catch it early it can be treated with decomposition and potassium phosphate. Its associated with sub optimal soil conditions.

Never say never mate. I was still on the tools when I did the old tech cert but quickly got a love for the advisory side. Tree climbing is a young mans game. There are days when I miss it but when its 80 degrees or raining I cope. if you have any further questions feel free to ask. Good luck.

Yes I know its a recommendation. They can't teach all you need to know in 3 days so you need the under pinning stuff to get the best out of it. I heard recently that there are a lot of L3 foresters failing it as they dont have the correct underpinning knowledge. Trees are trees apparently!!! Makes you wonder how many of those without L3 passed. When I started my second year of L6 there was a lad who had come straight from L2 against the advice of the tutor. He was like a rabbit in the headlights. Switched to L4 after one session. Building up the layers is key in education.

ISA wont move you on from L2 and wont set you up for surveying work. I' done that as well. L4 will. If you want to get into surveying you should also look at the Lantra PTI. Good course and only 3days. You need minimum L3 arb to access though.

I did my NC arb when I was 23. Its a good age to start. I did NC hort when I was 18 and just messed about.

L4 is the next step from L2 in the professional qualifications so not to big. Go for it.

Depends what you want to do. L2 = tree surgeon, junior TO at a push. L4 is junior TO or tree surveyor. L6 = senior TO or consultant. You can go on from L6 to do chartered Arb, expert witness, and AA reg consultant or switch to academic and do a masters.

Tech cert does not exist anymore its been replaced by the L4. You can do an academic L3 such as national diploma but in my opinion they are nowhere near as good. Go L4 if you want to be TO or consultant. I did ND and tech cert and have just finished L6. Great courses TC and L6.

I would think its because you already have L2. L4 is higher education so you need access to it. L2 is same level as GCSE. If you went to do any form of higher education you would need lower quals to access. At least L2, possibly L3 - e.g. national dip or a level.

Good advice. In terms of testing compaction you can pick up a Dicky John Pentrometer for just over 200 quid. Bit of an outlay at the beggining but once you have one you can use it again and again and obviously charge for the investigation.

Good comment bear. I don't think they are exclusive. Experience and qualifications whatever level you are at is the key. CPD is also hugely important.

I agree. I spent 15 years as a freelance climber dismantling Lombardy pops on a drum brake for local tree surgeons that lacked the cahoonas! loved every minute of it. Only came off due to back injury. I wanted to stay in arb so I did some quals and they just built up over time. You can spot the TO's who came straight out of college a mile off. TPO officer told me once the he wanted me to drop crotch the cuts on a 50% height reduction on some limes. I asked him to come up and show me how that could be done. He didn't accept the invitation.

Not offensive at all mate, not what I meant. You made a very good point. You get out what you put in. I agree with your comments. I've been off the tools for ten years now and I've just started working Saturdays again to set up my own business. More work at the moment but worth it in the long run I hope.

Bit harsh but he is right. I do a 40 hour week then spend 15 hours a week on my L6. I also have an 18 month old. Hard work but the only way to progress. Go for it.

You can get a uk version of the study guide or at least you could at one time. I did it in 2002. Its ok and you can always build on it. There are additional fees for the exam.

Strictly speaking the L3 has more punch but I did ND years ago and thought it was rubbish. I switched and did tech cert instead. Still L3 but way more relevant. With the professional qualifications such as rfs and tech cert you tend to do tree specific stuff. With the academic you end up doing business studies and tractor driving and stuff like that. If you are thinking of L3 have a look at the L4 qcf qualification. Its the new version of tech cert. I'm just finishing the L6 and its awesome. Speak with Keely at tree life for further info. They run small group sessions at various locations as day release. About 15 days over one a year. You will come out as a junior consultant.

ISA Certified arborist is L2. You get a study book to work through and advice on further reading at the end of each chapter. Once you feel ready you just sign up for the exam so you can take your time. That will be cheaper and less demanding as a starting point. Its probably not as good as the qcf/rfs L2.

It makes the situation a little more compliated in terms of getting works done as the tree is not under your ownership but it is jumping the gun a little at this point. The first step is to identify if there is an issue and ownership doesn't make too much difference when inspecting the trees. Inspections in terms of tree condition may be limited due to lack of access but the subsidence bit will be relatively unaffected. You can measure the distance from building to tree with a laser so not an issue if its off site. You would just deal with the results in a differnt way. I'm surprised your mortgage leder or insurance provider have not asked for a report. I did one recently in Birmingham where the tree was touching the building. If retained there was a risk of direct damage as the building it was touching was a light weight single storey extension. If removed there was a risk of heave as the geological data said the soil was shrinkable and the tree was older than the house. Fortunatly for the new owner the geo data was out of date and the soil was actually not shrinkable so he could remove the tree. He exchanged contracts before he found any of this out as the engineers report only loosly mentioned the tree. I wouldn't advise this approach as if there is a problem it becomes yours. Also, if you get it done upfront you could ask the vendor to part fund.

I would agree with Woodyguys assessment of age as a guess. The important thing with age is, is it significantly older than the house as this is what influences heave. I wouldn't comment further on a forum as it would be getting into technical detail which would make up a report. Issues of liabillity go with that. My advice is get a report from a local arb. For info. you cant just look at this tree if there is a risk of subsidence. You would have to consider: vegetation on your land which could damage your property vegetaion on your land which could damage adjacent properties and, vegetation on adjacent lands which could damage your property These all carry potential liabilities. Hope this helps,

thought it looked old, it has sash windows thats why i asked. does it have a cellar? if not then the foundations are probably about 900mm and that is shallow. Wouldn't meet current building regs on shrinkable clay with trees present.

Maidenhair it is. Its not a tree which is considered by NHBC in terms of water demand but that isn't that relevant. Even if you assumed it had low water demand its zone of influence would be 10m at least so its clearly close enough to be an issue in the right circumstances. Even shrubs and vines can cause damage on highly shrinkable soils. How old is the building? If you are on a clay soil get a tree report. Its worth spending a few hundred quid when you consider the cost of the investment you are about to make. Don't think that as it is a street tree it can't be a problem. There are loads of plane trees in London streets which cause subsidence.