On 7 Mar 2020 at 7:04pm Sleeveless wrote:
Is there anyone out there who can answer a couple of questions regarding the tree felling on the A275.
Is it only Ash trees that have been felled or have they simply opted to remove everything?
Will the trees higher up the bank be removed at a later stage?
On 8 Mar 2020 at 10:49am Tom Pain wrote:
I'm no dendrologist but I've never seen a wood consisting of one species of tree, apart from artificial plantations. This is a typical bureaucratic blitz to fulfill some directive, a gesture to say they are tackling the ash die back crisis. If you ever stray from the pavement you might remember the laughable campaign to eradicate ragwort. It lasted about a year! Each plant produces millions of wind born seeds and they think killing some is going to get rid of it. One lane traffic on landport road yesterday,no work just cones and traffic lights. Happy motoring folks.
On 8 Mar 2020 at 1:15pm Stephen Watson wrote:
The woods were a predominately ash but also with some sycamore. The ash trees were affected by die back and this can make them brittle so the danger of such trees overhanging the road or growing on the bank immediately above it is clear. To remove just the ash trees would have been difficult and it would leave the sycamore trees (which had grown tall and narrow because of competition) at risk of snapping off in gales. I notice that some yew trees have been left which is good. I understand there is an intention to replant. In any case now the light has been let in there should be a lot of natural regrowth. I was really sad this had to be done because I loved those woods, even though I know they were not there in living memory, but I accept that it was necessary and the newly revealed views are a compensation.
On 9 Mar 2020 at 10:09pm Tom Pain wrote:
I wondered about the regrowth but unless they grub up the stumps the ash will sprout from them.
On 10 Mar 2020 at 10:11am Stephen Watson wrote:
Yes - If the ash is alive, it will regrow as coppice: a very traditional (and wildlife friendly) way to produce small diameter timber. In fact, Sussex is full of neglected coppices, which would once of been cut on maybe 15 year cycles. You can recognise them because you'll see old gnarled stumps (called stools) with many small, or if neglected, not so small, trees growing out of them.
On 10 Mar 2020 at 1:15pm Tom Pain wrote:
Which ignores the point that the tree stump is diseased. Will the new growth be miraculously cured? I don't know but it seems unlikely. Incidentally, why is coppicing, which seems to me a very environmentally friendly thing, no longer practiced? Obviously it's no longer commercially viable.
On 10 Mar 2020 at 1:51pm Stephen Watson wrote:
We'll have to see whether or how much the ash regrows - I understand the stumps haven't been chemically killed. Wilderness Wood at Hadlow Down is a working coppice, mainly sweet chestnut. You can visit, they have a cafe and sell woodland products.
On 11 Mar 2020 at 9:48pm Tom Pain wrote:
I wonder why the other coppices are neglected.
On 13 Mar 2020 at 11:31am Stephen Watson wrote:
I suppose, because demand for coppice wood fell and it's a labour intensive process. But very sustainable, and enjoyable if you like that sort of thing. At one time I used to go out with a conservation volunteer group - coppicing was always one of our favourite tasks. Beats ragwort pulling, anyway ...