How is tree health affected by soil compaction?

Why do we need to be concerned about compacted soil? Most tree roots are less than half a metre below the ground. Structural (woody) roots hold the tree up and consist of bundles of fibrous roots, which are very small and fragile, absorbing water and nutrients from the soil. These fibrous roots cannot survive if […]

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Edinburgh is still at risk from Dutch Elm Disease

It is a sad fact that Dutch Elm disease (Ophiostoma novo-ulmi) introduced to the UK in the 1960s, is still causing the removal of around 1,000 Elms in Edinburgh each year.  Despite decades of research, there is still no known effective way of preventing the movement of the Elm Bark Beetles (Scolytus scolytus). Edinburgh has lost around […]

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Protecting Bats on the Beauly-Denny Power Line

Why protect bats? The British Standards Institute announced that a new standard would soon be introduced to protect bats and their roosts during construction work or tree surgery (now known as BS8596:2015). Arbor Vitae Arboriculture were ahead of the game somewhat, carrying out highly detailed and professional inspections of woodland for bats. The Beauly-Denny Power Line […]

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Protecting Trees on a Development Site

Why protect trees? Tree roots need access to oxygen and water in order for the tree to survive. Building and development sites can be particularly prone to compacted soil, which prevents filtration of air and water to the tree roots and the tree will rapidly suffer. The cause of soil compaction is often the movement […]

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The Mysterious Kingdom of Fungi

Most western countries are fungi phobic – we have a deep fear of mushrooms, most likely because they were associated with witches, poisoning.  Many cultures (especially in eastern Europe) still possess the knowledge (and lack the fear) of fungi – what to pick and what to leave well alone.  Fungi are everywhere and the world would […]

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British Standard for Bat Surveying in Trees

The upcoming British Standard for ‘Surveying for bats in trees and woodland’ has now been closed for comment; hopefully we will see the completed document later this year. Bats are essential to our ecosystems, but they are threatened by habitat loss due to the renovation or demolition of old buildings, and the loss of old […]

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The Wilfred Owen Violin

Earlier this year, I was lucky enough to be asked to carefully remove a branch from a Sycamore at Napier University Craiglockhart Campus, where Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon convalesed during World War I.The Edinburgh violin maker Steve Burnett – creator of the famous ‘Sherlock Violin’, wished to commemorate the 100th year of the start […]

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