Tree Surgery

During all the excitement of getting the external walls rebuilt, I forgot to write about the tree surgery which happened in October 2014.

There were 3 issues with trees in the garden.

Front trees from in front of Sunny Acre, looking towards the main road

At the front of the property, at the corner of the main road and the bridleway, there were at least 5 over-tall conifers which made the whole property seem neglected and cut-off. I think they might have been planted originally as a hedge but they are really out of control.

Pine on neighbour's border

This back view of the South-West corner of the property shows the bottom of a conifer that has grown into the overhead electricity cable (eek!) and overhangs the neighbour's property. Poor Mary, every time it's been raining, gets an extra shower every time she walks under it. She really wants it gone.

A beautiful ash

This ash tree, on the South border has 2 issues which is a real shame because it is a beautiful tree and ash trees are suffering from a nasty disease. However, it is also growing up into the electricity cables, to the extent that I'm surprised the supply doesn't cut off every time there's a high wind. Also it is blocking the view, not from this angle but from the living room. My concern about the ash preservation is mitigated by the hundreds of ash saplings that blight my life at the Vicarage!

I get 3 tree surgeons in. I did hope to get the local guy in, advertising in the parish mag but he doesn't get back to me. I could have got David from the end of the lane but I didn't know he was in the biz at the time.

One guy is really off and grumpy - I don't think he wants the work and, sure enough, no quote materializes - so annoying.

One guy turns up in a smart uniform, takes ages, makes loads of notes and then seems to pluck a figure out of the hat - very bizarre.

The 3rd guy wanders round briefly, has a bit of a think and then says he'll email the quote. I'm thinking I won't hear from him but he sends me the most detailed, comprehensive and best quote!

First impressions aren't all that!

 Here are the logs - there are loads of logs around at the time and it's no difference to the quote whether they take or leave them.
What did make a difference was being prepared to have the chippings left in the garden. They have more than they want. People will buy bark chippings but not wood chippings - not pretty. They're fine in the garden which is in a state anyway. By the time I want to do anything with it, the chippings will have decomposed.

Lot's of nice logs to chop up for firewood. They need drying out first and "seasoning". Some of the bigger ones will probably hang about in a loggery (I know that sounds wrong, but it is a thing).

Here is the ash trunk.
I thought - nice straight trunk - let's try to get it planked with waney edges and then use it to frame mirrors or for a fireplace mantel. How eco-friendly - how fitting!
When the tree surgeon had finished, he phoned up to say he'd left the trunk by the back hedge so we could get a pick-up truck with a crane to extract it. I explained that I thought we'd man-handle it into our car and he laughed - very loudly.

When I next got to The Fleepit, I found I couldn't even roll it. I'm not sure how many people it would take to lift it but I think it looks nice where it is - a natural seat - very eco-friendly - very fitting!