ABtrees

Yeah that was my main concern. Mind you there's only so much one can (should) do - it's just I do like to see these and I'm trying to nurture as many different species as possible. I am quietly convinced that last year we had two broods one v. early (April) and the other Sept ish. But I can't find any records of this happening - even locally. My daughter has been spotting loads of newts in the last few days as well (see pic below.). They're pretty cool - but nothing on Mick's from last year !

Oh and we are incredibly lucky to have found ourselves in fritilliary central : Silver -washed, Queen of Spain, Marbled, Lesser Marbled, Violet, Heath, Dark Green, Knapweed and Small Pearl Bordered to name (quite) a few !

Absolutely bang on Paul - saw a few more than usual last year (see the Local Wildlife thread that I'm sorry to say I hijacked last year) so left maybe 50m2 of lawn uncut all summer long and found these 3 days ago. Chuffed. However I'm in a bit of a quandary : I believe in generally leaving things be and letting nature take it's course BUT today was 23 degrees - next Weds forecast is for 4 inches of snow followed by minus 8 !!! I'm not sure they'll make it so thinking of kidnapping the whole lot for a few days and putting them back afterwards - what do you reckon ?

You're definitely heading in the right direction with that - and no more in the middle (of France !). Go on, name names then ?

Quite pleased with these little fellas (if they are what I think they are) - anyone want to have a guess ?

Here's a bit of an odd one - any ideas ?

Hi Gary It is a nice pic but I think with the slightly shorter beak and that black chin this may well be a Willow (or possibly Marsh) tit rather than a male Blackcap. Always ready to be corrected !

For my twopenneth, pretty sure these are entirely genuine - old but genuine. They are the 'file kit' Stihl used to send out with their new saws (about 20 years ago !) along with a little orange screwdriver for the carb. I have the exact self same thing - came with a MS250 from a Stihl dealer - kit is unused if anyone is interested !!!!!!!!

Thanks to all of you for your advice and encouraging comments (apart from Mr Stubby, of course !!!). You guys have much more experience than me and the little ideas, when combined, maybe make a big difference to the outcome. As I said, this one had a reasonable result and I do spend a lot of time thinking about safety issues. My dilemma is that I obviously need the 'practice' to expand my knowledge and understanding of the issues in play, but equally I don't (generally speaking) cut down trees for the sake of it. I felt this one was dangerous (lean increasing, v. top heavy, next to public road and likely to fall into/across the river) so it had to go. (Pic below of it standing - its the one in the middle ! ). Thought about climbing it and removing some limbs to redistribute the weight a bit but caution/safety combined with a lack of understanding of the extent of the rot issue kept my feet on the ground (OK - bottled it and took the easier option !!!). Maybe what I need to do is go through some 'theoretical fells' on those in the field (and leave them for the next storm!) - try to improve my 'tree body language' skills at the same time. Or maybe ….. it might be time to invest in a proper winch.

Thanks for this Lux. Safety is always top of my list. Can you (or anyone else) suggest some reading on the rot and their effects (or is it Google search - again !)? My v. limited knowledge is 'dry' and 'wet' rot but I'm sure there is more to it than that. I'm fortunate to live surrounded by trees (maybe 70% Oak) of all different ages and states of decay (in most of the older ones). I generally just leave them be if they're out of the way as I really enjoy the whole nature/habitat/ecosystem bit, so I'm certainly not complaining. It really is a case of trying to deal with those that I have to competently (which I view as being less reliant on a tractor to determine the direction of fall !!!!!). So as ever any guidance much appreciated.

Morning Moose. Perhaps I should have said, in the rural middle of France. We are due south of Paris and due East of La Rochelle, in the Indre. The nearest town of any significance is La Chatre. Someone asked me on the phone the other day if I was self-isolating to which my response was yes since 2006 !

Was trying not to get involved in the derail (as I'm genuinely keen to learn) but …….. Stubby, if you're going to be the fashion police I feel it's important you know your wellies before you start flinging them ! So those are NOT B&Q's - they are Noras (here we go !) - the staple footwear of any self respecting dairy farmer (not that I am one!) - they're plastic not rubber, very hard wearing and as, wellies go I highly recommend them ( but not for chainsawing !). For the record, I also have a pair of bright orange ones (yes, you know the make) and a pair of Chameau - both of which I find uncomfortable after a couple of hours - I have odd feet ! So as not to offend I'll try and keep my footwear out of future pics but I had to get up there to illustrate my point !!!!!

Thanks for the reply Drinksloe. They're usually old Oaks. I take on board the point you make about toes and buttresses and I'm always glancing up the tree as I cut (maybe I should get one of those new back protectors !). Generally I can take my time doing my assessment / investigative bits. I took one down on Sunday which has been troubling me for a while - rotten 'pixie door' at the base, rot extended at least 1.2m up inside so I cut above tis point. I got the throw line where I wanted it (about 15m up and over the best looking junction - tree was 25m + very top heavy and back leaning a bit) and rope on the tractor and a couple of ratchet straps on to try to contain any barber chair action (or at least to give me another 1/2 a second head start !). All went fine and it ended up landing on my target stick!!! - so I can't complain. But when I inspected the stump I was more than a bit surprised by how little wood (hinge) I had had. See pic below. I'm really just trying to do things correctly and in a way that gives me more confidence before I start so all suggestions (theory or practical are always welcome. Thanks.

Help ! Looking for some guidance (probably more theoretical than practical). I find myself coming across quite a few rotten or hollow trees some (out of harms way), I just leave for the next big storm and tidy up afterwards ! Others I can't ignore - danger to my family or the general public - and as such they need to be taken down. I usually try to get a handle on how much sound wood I'm dealing with (bore cut and see what comes out !) but I have been massively wrong on a couple of occasions which is slightly worrying. So (as yet another example of my ignorance), my question is this: Is there an approved method of evaluating the extent of the sound wood (to create a decent hinge) or do I just carry on working on what feels right as I cut ? And/or is there a special felling cut for hollow/rotten trees that anyone on here can suggest or can you share with me how you deal with them in practice pls. ? Go easy on me guys - I need something fairly simple - I'm in the middle of rural France and don't have access to too many (enough!) fancy toys and gizmos !

As I keep telling everyone, I'm just an (enthusiastic) poorly educated amateur. I rely on the likes of David. AJS. yourself and many others on here to enlighten me. Thanks.

Some more of these pink things (on a different oak) - they remind me of pig snouts. And the evil Mr.Fungi

Here's are couple of recent ones the first 2 pics are the same one above and (v.poor pic - sorry) below. These remain brown in low/no light conditions and then turn pink after a few days exposure to daylight. The other one is one I get every year beneath the same silver birch.

That's got to be a pisser - but actually not totally surprising - as far as I gather that's a perfect host tree for these guys - ancient oak starting to decay - as they become rarer so will the beetles. Did you find any larvae or the beetles themselves ? The little I know can't really ever be described as an 'education' (look at some of my other posts) but I continue to learn something new almost every day and try to pass it on - if others find it interesting or useful so much the better. This forum and the people on here have such diverse knowledge and experiences and I have learnt so much so I'm grateful to all of you for that. BTW there was a proper (scientific) survey of these done in Aug 17 (if anyone wants it I can post a link).

Hi Rough As above, that was a musk beetle. Yes it is a longhorn but then so are thousands of others (worldwide) - there's over 200 longhorn species here in France. Many (of their larvae) don't live in trees at all. The picture before is also a longhorn, the Tanner beetle (aka : the Great British Longhorn beetle). I think you might be referring to the Grand Capricorne (Cerambyx cerdo) photo below taken in May. This is a seriously impressive beetle which we see from time to time and I don't doubt it damages (and occasionally maybe kills) Oaks. Its numbers are reducing (you be pleased to hear !) and it's now a fully protected species in France. Their lifecycle is only 3 or 4 years and they don't live in dead trees. There are plenty of other beetles that will do at least as much damage as these guys but worse than all of them put together, right now our biggest oak killer is drought.

Hi Paul Good spot. It is indeed a musk beetle. Lives off (or rather in as a larvae) willow.

Hi Rough, I don't mean to be rude but what is a 'European' Longhorn Beetle ? And why do you think I should kill it ?

Will this wasp (spider) do instead ?

Rather than bore you by uploading all my butterfly pics here's is my favourite of the summer - and a spot the moth - obviously !!!

That's the one - and on my potatoes ! I'm sure Mr Dempsey knows them only too well (as Doryphore) !!!

Haven't posted on this thread for a couple of months so first up are a few beetles taken over the summer - in no particular order but one of them definitely wasn't welcome.