With the driest February for 30 years followed by the wettest March in England since 1981, I think it is safe to say it has been a challenge recently to get jobs completed or in some cases even started! We are very grateful for your patience and understanding.
As trees come into leaf, it will be a good time to undertake safety surveys, especially if you have ash trees present in your portfolio. We are still finding trees with no signs of the disease, so there may still be hope that the landscape may not be devoid of ash trees going forward; however, time will tell.
The King’s Coronation will be a chance to see this spectacle for the first time in my lifetime. And, who knows,I may see another one if I’m lucky!
Don’t forget, we add images to both our Facebook posts and our news posts on our website in between newsletters so you can always catch up on our current activities there.
Some replacement barbed wire fencing going up in south Wiltshire this week with Gordon Bottomley and Mark Holbrook.
For information on all the different kinds of fencing services we offer, please see our fencing services page here. https://www.conservation-contractors.co.uk/services/fencing-and-gates/
In case you’ve forgotten some of what we do, we’ve taken a 30-second promotional slot with Southern Counties Auctioneers. If you’re attending, watch out for the screen with the ads. It will be shown in Salisbury and Cirencester.
Part of a larger fencing project, a 5ft (1.45m) high post and rail fence as part of a cattle handling unit. We have been fencing for The Gourmet Goat Farmer at Avebury (or on Facebook here) constructing a new cattle handling unit. In addition, we’ve carried out various other fence repairs and replacements prior to livestock going out for summer grazing – if spring arrives!
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See if you can tell which part of the woodland near Tidworth is for thinning today. You can see from the photo of the woodland in the distance that one side has fewer trees than the other. We have removed the dangerous trees and those with Ash dieback
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“This ancient oak tree, thought to be more than 650 years old, owes its long life to William John Chute, who opened The Vyne during the 19th Century.
It’s believed that the tree gained its name after he refused to sell it to a naval agent looking for timber at the time of the Battle of Trafalgar. When Chute refused the first offer of £100, the agent returned the following day and offered one hundred guineas*. According to diary entries written at the time, Chute said “any tree that increases in value by £5 overnight is too valuable an investment to lose”.
The hundred guinea oak has been present for many key moments in The Vyne’s history. In Tudor times, it saw royal visitors, including Hendry VIII with Catherine of Aragon, and later with Anne Boleyn. And during the Second World War, it witnessed the Estate being used to shelter evacuees.
Over its lifetime, the tree has also supported a variety of wildlife. It’s a favourite resting place for jackdaws and nuthatches. and squirrels can frequently be seen moving around the branches.
Fungal decay has slowly hollowed out the trunk which provides shelter for invertebrates and bats.
How we care for the tree: Rare and ancient trees need special care. To make sure it can withstand bad weather, we tested the tree by hooking it up to movement sensors and exerting a force that monitors its position and tells us how it fares against a non-prevailing wind.
We also treat the roots to a lovingly deep layer of oak wood chip and a solution of compost steeped in microbes. This process improves the air in the soil and makes the nutrients more easily absorbed by the tree”
(taken from the information board in front of the tree)
*A guinea was worth £1,1s (one pound and one shilling). This is the same as £1.05 in modern money, and to this day guineas are used to sell horses.
Very approximately, £100 in 1850 is equivalent in purchasing power to just over £17,000 today.
