Steven P

If you can't get to the ground to get a couple of photos then a better description of what you have might help. Sounds to me like it is a field that was scrubland that has been cleared and you want to make a woodland out of it. Is it flat ground, slopes, water sources, access points, where you want to create your human parts, where you want the wild life to be (sculpting and managing). Will the whole site need planting or replanting? When did you buy it? A woodland isn't something to pop to visit every 6 months and expect it to be picture perfect (that's what the national trust does), it takes work, even silly things like picking up the wind blown litter, clearing the paths and so on can take a half day a month before you get onto planting and developing. Anyway grab a screen shot from somewhere like Google Street view and perhaps an arial* shot so we have a visual to know what your on about. Of course, clip off the location data.

living the dream!

Free logs and you accept what comes and when, If you want a regular supply then phone up a local tree surgeon or 2 and discuss a price and species, generally a tipper truck load at a time will be fuel + time + some consideration but will be less than the equivalent dried logs. Might be you get lucky and the tree surgeons will just ask a nominal amount to give you a regular supply. I'd go with a regular supply rather than a huge amount all at once because then you can see progress working through a log pile. Sounds like talking to the tree surgeons is the way to go here, free stuff tends to be softwoods - which are great but you do need to fuel more regularly, hardwoods are the premium but are easier for heating large areas

Every rule in the rule book is off the back of an accident.

Photos of the brash piles might be handy when you are visiting. If you have 2 acres to look after then it would be prudent to have a few tools to do work like this, get a saw with a chain that you can afford to trash should slice it into portions that you can move. However, if there are many rodents like you suggest they are not eating rotting leaves, they are going after another food source. That is where your problem lies.

Apples.. the deer in my woods will take all they can get.. so while you may avoid squirrel damage, something else might find it just as tasty.

Maybe a little pre-emptive but: "remind me how many wars and drone strikes Obumma and Biden did Vs the Donald."... looks like he is gearing up for conflict number 1 of this presidency in Gaza, 26 days in and "all hell will be let loose"

Mental!

Mental.

The link isn't working

That one nearly got a thumbs up:

Pink hair? Remember when the olds used to moan at us for mohicans? I guess the kids later will moan again about their grand kids having coloured hair too and odd liberal ideas. We get old, some get grumpy. (anyway Peds, it is usually smoke and mirrors, get them riled up about the insignificant, and while they are distracted do what you really want.) I am going to derail this though and show my old gitted-ness with a Tony Hancock reference - Rhesus Positive? Their monkeys aren't they, classic.

You need to hang about the forum more, 5 pages in and only 1 joke? The thread is holding interest more than most. Usually by 5 pages we've had a page for the topic, a page of insults, a page of bad puns and 2 pages on a complete tangent. Cleaning up with a detergent pun? I'd be all for that.

6 months ban, 12 month suspended sentence? Proper bellends, but also idiots for forgetting that every man (or woman) and their dog (or... ) has a camera phone at the ready, and the police will take it as evidence quite happily.

Had to look carefully to see the rope on the right, thought the bigger one was going to hold the little one up - full Irish Breakfast I was assuming. Only ever had the Lidle straps out a few times, I can get it taught enough for The Boys to have a good go and for me to fall off fairly quick.

I did a bit of climbing in earlier days - not trees and in the corporate world where we were risk assessed to death which is where my comment is coming from. We wouldn't be allowed to make a move unless the rescue climber was kitted up (He'd usually stay on the ground though). My point is I'll assume that the site 'belongs' to the boss with regards to safety and working the site, and they'd be sharing with the workers the risk assessments. If the risk assessment says 'rescue climber' (or equivalent wording) and there is none, an accident happens but work had started because the boss said to go ahead then I think the liability sits on their shoulders? Insurers would use it as an excuse to duck out of a pay-out. Now suppose a worst case - end of career injury or worse, can the boss afford to make suitable financial payments out of their pocket? Other lines of work where the job stops if the safety supervisor (equivalent to rescue climber) goes off site - even for a 5 min toilet break, we stop. We don't change our behaviours cause they aren't there - still work safely - but the liability shifts to us and away from the agreed assessment and method statements. Both examples working for large companies in the corporate world. Could be the best climber in the world, accidents happen, can you afford the insurers to walk away? Might be the case where the RA doesn't specify a 2nd climber in which case I think it is whatever you are comfortable with and the job in hand.

Not a good week for his press relations: Trump calls for '60 minutes' and CBS to be 'terminated' - immediately no less. Cannot be having the press write bad things. Trump complains he cannot understand a reporter... but her accent is wonderful. Didn't even bother to ask her to repeat her question (about Afghanistan), not sure if that is him ignoring an awkward question, racist or sexist.. or all 3

Would be a nice golf course along that coast, sunny with plenty of bunkers. (only draw back is to do that the US would also need to step up and house 1.8 million Palestinian immigrants since none of the neighbouring states have ever wanted to do that, with many many barriers to them moving away from Gaza into neighbouring states.)

Ran past some tree work yesterday, reasonably main town road with full traffic management, cones, lights, and the traffic management company in attendance... remembering this thread I took note - didn't see anyone being too arsey with it... but that road often has works on it just now... Multiple trees over about 100m and not sure if that helped with it being a longer scheme than just a single tree where you can 'see' what is going on to take a chance? Cones, Traffic lights, Footpath closed off Traffic management company in attendance About 6 workers all in high vis

For a slack line Lidle do some ratchet straps fairly cheap every now and then if you need them

Tow truck at fault I reckon, the cyclists were going round a corner, doesn't look like they were racing or going fast, the view of the towed van and half the wire was obstructed by the wheelie bin (placed by the recovery truck guys?) - they can't see what is going on, reaction time is not a lot. I get this a lot while running - dogs on trip wires, practically impossible to see.

You talking the Labour thread or the POTUS thread?

Labour bashing or adoration would go into the 'Who likes Labour' thread? Trump bashing or adoration would go in this thread? There is a little overlap of course but I don't think that Starmer or Trump have announced any results of any negotiating yet, or from Trump and tariffs on UK goods. However with the news catching up on Trumps twatterings, it appears that his negotiating with Mexico worked so spectacularly that they agreed to continue with the agreement they'd made with Biden and nothing more. With Canada he just rolled over and dropped the tariffs threat when they went 'fine, cancel the contracts and don't sell US goods'. None of the threatened EU or UK tariffs appearing, is that maybe that the EU and UK have stood together a bit, Trump finds it hard to divide and conquer (his favourite technique) against a united opposition. As I mentioned above, so far his international relations and negotiations have been bluster and bluff, no substance and business as it was at the end of 2024 despite the bravado he went into office with, wanting to change the world quickly... I think we'll be waiting a while yet.

Yes, but mostly irrelevant to what Trump is doing with his tariffs isn't it? (threat, 'negotiate', publicise big wins (that might have already been negotiated))

But Ireland isn't imposing tariffs on imports to the US are they?