Common Alder

Thank you.

Thank you for your responses. Think I got carried away with the questions as I really don't know the important questions to ask. It seems you are agreed that the red/brown under the bark is not normal and may or may not be serious. Would appreciate anyone nearby providing quote to come have a look Location: Maldon Essex

Hi elspedo Thanks for your response. I took another look, more like soot or soil but some bark is brittle. I have attached a few more pics of where bark snapped off easily and some fungi on ground, they were also some wood lice under the outer bark. This maybe completely normal as I say I am a complete novice. Any responses greatly appreciated

Hi, There are 2 Common Alder at the front of my house, one is on my property and the other in the back garden of a neighbour. Both trees are subject to a TPO. They affect the neighbours garden more than mine and he applied for consent to carry out the following work : Crown Lift to 4metres; Thin Crown by 20%; Reduce width by 1-1.1.5 m all round; Reduce height by upto 3 m (the specification was applied to the 2 trees as one crown) The consent was granted in October 2013 with the usual conditions and guidance that the work should be carried out to both trees at the same time. The work was carried out in February 2014. I thought it neighbourly to permit the work to my tree, the neighbour instructed the tree surgeon. The trees have a girth of about 1.90 M and DBH of about 68 cms. The trees, have produced numerous water sprouts/shoots, and my questions are related to the future care of the trees, given their situation within 10m of 3 properties 1. Will these shoots become weak branches? Or will they grow as strong as the previous branches (pictures attached) 2. Will the energy required to produce these numerous shoots weaken the trees usual defences against disease etc. 3. Having now read some info about Common Alder, would the water shoot /epicormic./ new shoot growth be considered a disadvantage? Or what are the disadvantages associated with this type of work(if any)? Would this have been explained to my neighbour? 4. I noticed recently the bark at the bottom of the tree seemed damp and blackened, underneath the outer bark, the bark is a reddish colour, is this normal? (pictures attached) 5. There is also this black stuff –( picture attached) 6. In the last week I have noticed this hole? It appears fresh, would this be a woodpecker or something else? (picture attached) 7. What age do Alders reach maturity? that is when would growth be expected to slow down? I realise there is no definitive answer to this but some sort of approx. age would be great. Apologies, if these questions seem basic I know very little about trees! would appreciate any help. If any Arb consultants are based nearby please provide a quote to take a closer look at trees.