Author: Debbie Newman

The ultimate in upcycling

Posted on by Debbie Newman

The ultimate in upcycling:  during WW2, 28000 concrete Pill Boxes were built to defend the arteries of England against a possible invasion.  The Pill Boxes are all made of concrete.  In this project, we converted an initial four of them for use by bats ! These were all undertaken within the Pewsey Vale alongside the Kennet & Avon Canal,  as part of a Crown Estate Funded Project.

We blocked up all but one viewing point,  creating a lockable door fitting, perches and bat boxes to the inside.

See this link to The Historic England Blog for more information.

 

The ultimate in upcycling

 

 

Mechanical dismantling of a pair of dying oak trees

Posted on by Debbie Newman

Mechanical dismantling of a pair of dying oak trees over a security fence.  We used a Magni telehandler fitted with a Westmec grapplesaw.

The decision was made to remove 2 oak trees to a pollard following a PICUS test and Health and Safety concerns.   Had it been a different location, it would have remained untouched.  There will be a fence around it shortly, and the pollard will remain for a long time to come

See our tree survey information and details of PICUS here

Magni telehandler

Planting of 9000 new trees and shrubs

Posted on by Debbie Newman
Planting of 9000 new trees and shrubs as part of a screening project on the edge of the Cotswolds.

Total number of trees/saplings planted:  6408
Shrub species for the field edges: Hazel, Holly, Viburnum, Blackthorn, Field Maple, Hawthorn.
Tree species for the middle sections:  Alder, Pine, Oak, Poplar, Hazel, Willow, Holly.

Putting something back!
Planting of 9000 new trees and shrubs Planting of 9000 new trees and shrubs Planting of 9000 new trees and shrubs

Chipping of sycamore trees infected with possible sooty bark disease (Cryptostroma corticale)

Posted on by Debbie Newman

Chipping of sycamore trees infected with possible sooty bark disease.
Dust suppression was required, as it was the only dry day last week!
See Forest Research for more information about Sooty bark disease (Cryptostroma corticale)

Dismantle completed chipping to commence,
Great job by Scott, Antony , Richard and Cameron is even back for a while !