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A
Ash:
The Ash tree is an
indigenous tree to Britain and arguably produces the best fire
wood as one can burn it green. Top
B
Boots:
Chainsaw boots are
essential when operating a chainsaw and a legal
requirement. They have a protective toe cap and special
material similar to those of the trousers which protect your
ankle and foot from chainsaw cuts.
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C
Chainsaw:
Chainsaws come in
several different shapes and sizes. A tree surgery
company requires a minimum of one tree saw, a medium size saw
and a large saw to tackle large trunks. My
recommendation is to have several back up saws for large
jobs. Chains often blunt, saws break and get jammed so
it is important to have back up.
D
Disease:
If there is any tell tale signs of disease in or
around your tree - die back or fungal growth and cankers- call
in a tree surveyor who will be able to diagnose whether there
is a need to take action.
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E
Elder:
The elder tree is one of our native trees which
produces wonderful flowers in the summer which can be picked
and make delicious elderflower cordial. Equally the
berries can produce Elder berry wine.
Top
F
Four x Four:
4x4 jeeps are very useful
when in the tree surgery business. They come in handy
for pulling large trailer loads of wood and wood chips and can
travel over fields with ease.
G
Grain:
The grains of the woods vary enormously form very
pale woods like sycamore, maple and lime to darker woods like
walnut, elm and oak. A tree surgeon should always be on
the look out for wood with interesting colours and
patternation. They can often be found in burrs, and
spalted beech. If one is fortunate enough to take down a
rippled sycamore then there will be people who pay you
thousands so that they can turn the wood into furniture or
musical instruments.
Top
H
Harness:
Like chainsaws there are
so many different types of harnesses and it is really up the
the tree surgeon to decide which one he or she prefers.
They vary enormously in size and comfort and it is very
important to chose one that suits you because it effectively
holds you up a tree at those enormous heights.
Top
I
Insurance:
It is desperately
important to hold adequate insurance. Tree surgery is a
very dangerous form of employment and you are risking your
life and limb every day. Personal injury insurance,
Employers insurance and Liability insurance is
essential. The risks in this industry are
enormous.
Top
J
Jobs:
Because of the gruelling nature of this business -
many hands are often needed to make work light. One
should have grounds men, two tree climbers, first aiders and
health and safety people on site at all jobs. There will
be jobs advertised on this site.
Top
K
Karabinas:
One must always check
these vital bits of equipment which link your ropes to your
harness. They should be routinely checked and maintained
and renewed as they hold everything together
Top
L
Lime Trees
Lime trees are wonderful
in many ways. When they flower they have the most
fantastic scent which becomes all the more pronounced in the
cool evenings, they provide nectar for the bees and tree
surgeons can sell the wood to carvers who delight in its soft
qualities as a wood.
Top
M
Mushrooms:
I am always on the look out for tasty mushrooms
under trees. It is particularly worth looking under
beech and silver birch trees where one can find delicacies
such as chanterelle mushrooms.
Top
N
Nuts:
Nuts are another delicacy associated with
trees. Walnuts, Chesnuts, hazelnuts and beech nuts are
particular favourites of humans. Acorns are the beloved
food of pigs and during the autumn they can put on significant
weight gorging themselves on fallen acorns underneath oak
trees.
Top
O
Oak Trees:
Oak trees are one of our most treasured things in
the British Isles. They are a native species which have
helped the British population throughout our history. We
built ships and houses out of oak, the wood has helped keep us
warm over the generations, we fed our animals on the acorns,
used the tanin for curing our leather, matured our wine in oak
casks and used the sawdust and wood chips to smoke our meat
for preservation.
Top
P
Prusik:
Prusik knots are the most
common knots used in tree surgery. It is the essential
knot used to join the karabina to the climbing rope and is so
wonderfully simple to learn. All you need is a small
loop of rope with a double fisherman's knot and you can secure
it onto any climbing rope by tying the prusik knot.
Top
Q
Quince:
The quince tree can be found in a lot of old
British country gardens as its golden yellow fruit was highly
prized for its culinary properties. The fruit make a
delicious jelly or marmalade. It is not native to
the United Kingdom but to South West Asia and it is the only
member of the genus Cydonia. It is related to apples and
pears and can grow to eight metres.
Top
R
Regulation:
One has to comply to strict regulations when
practising legal tree surgery. All the equipment needs
to be CE marked, the ropes and lifting equipment needs to be
Lola certified and all tree surgeons must be wear proper
safety equipment and be adequately insured and trained.
Top
S
Sawmills:
I am very sad to say that there has been a decline
in sawmills in the U.K over the years because we import more and
more wood. It is anticipated however, that consumer power
is dictating markets for homegrown timber which is inspiring a
new generation of small sawmill operators who mill local wood
for furniture and wood turners.
Top
T
Training:
NPTC training is widely
available for people who want to learn to be a tree
surgeon. There are numerous certificates available for
work which varies from tree climbing and pruning to
electricity work to felling large trees.
Top
U
Undercut:
When cutting a limb, it is
very important to do an undercut in the branch before one does
the vertical cut. If a tree surgeon does not do this,
the bark will rip and leave a nasty ugly tear on the underside
of the branch and leave a wound over the collar of the branch
join which will make healing more difficult.
Top
V
Vice:
A vice is a useful instrument
to use when you are sharpening your saw as it holds the bar
firmly in place when filing.
Top
W
Winch:
I find a winch an invaluable bit of
equipment. If one climbs a tall fir tree and ties a rope
high up and then hooks it onto a powerful winch which is
anchored to a tree it is easy to fell a tree in the direction
you want. It is also useful if your chipper comes off
its tracks or if you wish to roll over a large trunk of wood
and prevent touching the ground with your chainsaw.
Top
X
Xylem:
Xylem is derived from the
classical word 'wood' and is at the heart of every tree.
It transports sap from the roots by two forms of
pressure. One is by the pull of osmosis through the root
cells and the other is through the transpirational pull of of
the water evaporating through the trees leaves.
Top
Y
Yew:
The Yew tree is an evergreen native tree to Britain
and one of my favourite trees. It is said to have
spiritual qualities and consequently one finds a lot of trees
in church yards - it is also thought to be very unlucky to cut
down a yew. The oldest living trees in Britain are Yews
and its wood is highly prized among wood turners and furniture
makers. Its grain is stunning and the wood is incredibly
strong - because of these properties Long bows were made out
of Yew. Beware though of animals getting too close to
yew as it is deadly poisonous.
Top
Z
Z shaped furniture:
A style of furniture is z shaped tables..
Top
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