Paul in the woods

Do you have a picture of the buds? To me it looks like a poorly grown garden ash tree. That matches up with being called a weed (weed is just a plant in a wrong place and plenty of people refer to trees as weeds). No doubt a picture of the buds will prove me wrong.

Assuming the poster is telling the truth then the damage was done before the TPO. Any idea why the council would not of TPOed the tree when it sold the land? Again, assuming what has been said is true, the council would have known the tree was going to be removed.

I note Briggs' Vanguard site recommends synthetic and states it should mean less oil consumption. Personally I'd use Briggs' synthetic oil and keep an eye on the level but I don't maintain engines. https://www.vanguardpower.com/eu/en_gb/support/faqs/browse/oil-recommendations.html

So, what do you do if you find something such as a firearm or ammunition?

I've heard it's the young males as well, although I thought the jury was still out on exactly why. I also know someone who's trees were always targeted in the depths of winter. I have also found that reducing the numbers does indeed keep the damage down. I had assumed the tree in discussion was in a back garden where squirrel control might be more difficult. If you want to try the control method I can suggest a couple of traps. But out in the woods a .410 is ideal or even dust off the old 12 bore when they greys get too used to you.

2nd what Openspaceman has said, it looks exactly like old grey squirrel damage. Some looks several years old. I've got some sycamore that gets badly damaged every year to such an extent the trees are almost dead. Probably not much you can do to prevent it, I find it happens around June although it can be most times of the year. Look out for strips of orangeish bark on the ground.

I don't know about large machinery but I've been to quite a few house clearance / bankrupt small company auctions over the last few years. They seem quite variable, something obvious often goes for too high a price. On the other hand, on the odd day, some things are an absolute bargain. That's complicated by the current climate where lots of people seem to be sitting on piles of cash from various grants and not being able to spend it.

Local Oak Sawmill | West Sussex | Northwood Forestry Ltd WWW.NORTHWOODFORESTRY.CO.UK Northwood Forestry Specialists in Oak Beams, Cladding, Oak Framed Buildings, Pergolas, Air Dried and Kiln Dried Oak... Retirement.

I don't think honey bees are that endangered, if anything some of the latest reports were saying that in some locations there may be too many. Other bees, bumbles, solitary and suchlike are far more at risk. They certainly have problems such as varroa but plenty of people are keeping them. I agree with Paddy though, some of the farmers round here seem to spray almost weekly which can't help. Thankfully my bees mainly forage on the pastures and woodlands and avoid the sprays.

This is where I feel / hope Woodsure will step in to help. It's highly likely your meter is measuring on a dry basis so anything under 25% dry basis is under the magical 20% wet basis. However, the only way to know for sure is to ask Stihl. (It would be very helpful if anyone who does get an answer from their manufacturer posts up what they say). I wrote the post to explain there is and will be confusion for everyone until things are clarified by Woodsure. As for the kiln dried oak, what's your meter's minimum measurement? I think some will only read down to about 6% so the wood may not be zero on the outside. I think the only way you'll get an accurate measurement is to try the oven dry method.

If we're talking honey bees I don't think there is any law. If one of my colonies swarms and settles in someone else's tree they are now their bees to do with what they want. At this time of year they should be a fairly small colony but starting to build up. You should see them flying now on a warm day. If you want to be sure you could contact the BBKA: Contact | British Beekeepers Association WWW.BBKA.ORG.UK National Charity for 25,000+ amateur beekeepers Or even find your local Bee keeper who may possibly help you remove them here (scroll down to the bottom of the page to find you local collector: Swarm removal | British Beekeepers Association WWW.BBKA.ORG.UK Beekeepers are often approached about winged, flying creatures, especially in the spring and summer period, when...

I have a Chillington wheelbarrow from Wickes with a puncture free wheel. The wheel has been fine for several years and is going to outlast the barrow by the looks of it. I've gone over some fairly rough ground and don't miss the pnumatic tyre. I also have another barrow with an innertube and puncture (well the innertube split around the valve) so agree with the poor quality. I've picked up a solid wheel for it but need to sort out an axel as all the wheels seem to be incompatible with all the barrows.

Have a search for hurley sticks on here, not suitable for everyone but a possible use.

I'm not sure I can add much to the comments already posted. Unless you were promised a certain moisture content or the wood was supplied by an accredited scheme (Woodsure Ready to Burn for example) then I guess they could supply anything. I'm not an expert on meters, just use one to help me season the wood I cut myself. Whilst looking into them it did seem the pin type are more reliable to the scanning method. Unseasoned ash will be about 35 - 40 % moisture so 50 - 70% sounds way out even for unseasoned wood. When you used the pin method on a split log did you push the pins all the way in? On my meter you get a lower reading until the pins are pushed a fair way in. 22%, assuming it's dry basis, would be acceptable. As has been said, you can dry a sample of wood in your oven to get a better reading (following the advice in the article). If you could get hold of a fresh ash log you could also see what your meter records for that.

The Air Quality (Domestic Solid Fuels Standards) (England) Regulations coming into force soon stop small quantities of firewood from being supplied where the moisture content is above 20%. For details see: https://woodsure.co.uk/new-regulations-confirmed/ Moisture content of a piece of wood is defined in two ways: Wet basis which is a measure of the water in a log, expressed as the weight of water as a percentage of the wet/unseasoned log. (i.e. wood and water) Dry basis which is a measure of the water in a log, expressed as the weight of water as a percentage of the completely dry log. (i.e. just the wood) Firewood is measured on a wet basis and although the new law does not mention what basis is used it is relating to fuel so it can be assumed the moisture content should be 20% wet basis. One of the most common ways of measuring the moisture content is by using a pin moisture meter. These meters were originally sold for measuring materials used in construction where moisture is likely to be measured on a dry basis. Many wood moisture meters do not state what basis they use and even the ones aimed at the firewood market are likely to measure on a dry basis. If you have a cheap moisture meter which measures on a dry basis it is worth noting 25% dry basis = 20% wet basis. Further information and useful calculations: Wet basis moisture content = (weight of water / weight of wet wood) * 100 = (weight of water / (weight of dry wood + weight of water)) * 100 = ((weight of wet wood - weight of dry wood) / (weight of wet wood)) * 100 Dry basis moisture content = (weight of water / weight of dry wood) * 100 = (weight of water / (weight of wet wood - weight of water)) * 100 = ((weight of wet wood - weight of dry wood) / weight of dry wood) * 100 You can convert from dry basis to wet basis using the following formula: Wet basis moisture content = (100 * Dry basis moisture content) / ( 100 + Dry basis moisture content) Further information, including how to test the moisture content by drying test pieces of wood in an oven, can be found in the following link. Note, this method could be used to confirm what basis a moisture meter uses to measure: https://www.forestresearch.gov.uk/documents/1979/FR_BEC_Testing_Moisture_Content_Simple_method_2011.pdf Example If we take a freshly cut wet log with a wet weight of 2000g and we remove all the moisture until we are left with 1200g of dry wood we have removed 800g of water. So: Wet basis the moisture would be = (weight of water / weight of wet wood) * 100 = (800 / 2000) * 100 = 40% Dry basis the moisture would be = (weight of water / weight of dry wood ) * 100 = ( 800 / 1200 ) = 66.7% You can convert from dry basis to wet basis using the following formula: Mwet = (100 * Mdry) / (100 + Mdry) In the above example is (100 * 66.7) / (100 + 66.7) = 40%

Same here, I resist the urge to plant things too early otherwise I spend all my time trying to stop things from getting too leggy. We don't have a heated greenhouse and even if we did courgettes can't be planted out until May. We'll start off the toms and chillies today. Perhaps some peas and mangetouts as well.

Very nice. What do you plan to do with them? Can you use the light wood as well as the dark?

Yes please. I don't mind people moaning as long as it's constructive and I can learn something. Something that was missing with yesterdays ramblings. I may never need or see a tuned saw but I'm curious to know what can be done and why.

I've never seen it in real life but it looks like the fruit bodies of silver leaf, Chondrostereum purpureum. Worth googling some images to compare. Some information about it can be found on the RHS site but I don't think it's good news. https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=245

I have a bit of a mix, so from about 6" to 12". I only have a small chainsaw mill so I hope to mill into 3" planks and then slice them up using a 3" circular saw to give me 2.5" planks once planed. I've mentioned before that my OH has a spinning wheel mostly made from Alder so I expect alder to be fairly stable once seasoned.

That's interesting, I've got a few acres of alder about the same size as the logs in your link. I've milled a little and it seems fairly stable. I'm planning on using some for floor boards and some for shelving. Offcuts are nice to cook over.

If you have some time to read through it the Forest mensuration handbook might be worth a look. https://www.forestresearch.gov.uk/documents/1963/FCBK039.pdf

I was just wondering if you're having a problem because your browser has remembered something. If you go into private browsing (also called incognito on chrome) it'll not remember anything. The browser can also find out roughly where you are so it can centre maps etc, again this might have caused a problem. Can you try a different browser or a different device?

Try opening the tip site directory in a private window. Don't allow your browser to know your location and try again. It's found the area but not the tips sites for some reason. I vaguely think this may have happened to someone previously but can't remember what happened.

Have you checked the tip site directory? https://arbtalk.co.uk/recycling/nearby-tipsites/?nearby=20&lat=52.0078738&lon=-0.5276333