The danger of dead trees

Lovely blog Lulu. I hope somebody removes those trees before they do some serious damage.

Good luck with the trees but getting councils to do anything is a nightmare.

I think my option of firewood would be easier but maybe a bit illegal!
Thanks GM!

We had to pay for a tree surgeon, but it did keep us in logs......

Do you know the landowner?

The trees are the property/responsibility of the County
Council as all grass verges are part of the Highway.

Those trees are too far off the road to be the responsibility of the Council. Speak to one of your Community Councillors and ask their advice.

Typical they'll wait until the dead branches block the road or worse, mind you it makes a lovely photo and the other one is smashing.....

We have a small woodland near us where there are lots of dead trees, and I really wish the council would get on top of them. Walking there is risky, as every storm brings another one down. There's another similar story close on a road here, and every time the wind blows, they end up having to clear a tree off the road and repair the dry stone wall....so stupid...if they maintained their woodland properly, they would save heaps of money in dry stone wall repairs! The ones in your pic look very totters indeed Lulu! I bet the land owner would gladly give you the wood for your fire if you could get the tree down....

Perhaps not though if he's a farmer....they need all the help they can get right now!

It is so worrying. My neighbour had a tree 5ft from the house a forty foot fir which was leaning towards the house. After our 91 mph winds they were really worried but the council told them if the touched it they would fine them £400.00. They asked for that in writing so as they could contact them if it crashed into the house......they were not keen. It was planted twenty years ago and is still growing. Sometimes a tree is just in the wrong place!

Yes, that's right Linda...some of these preservation orders are absolutely ridiculous.

Thanks all for your interest. Yes, these trees are not on council property and I could ask around as to the landowner.
I know how you feel when the wind is blowing a gale. I don't personally walk in our local woods, even though they are well maintained, it's amazing what comes down.
It's a pity we can't bulldoze the trees with the studs tractor (notPC!) but know it doesn't work that way. Tree felling is quite an art. I was hitting at the dead lower branches of the huge sycamore next to our cottage and then jumping out the way as it came tumbling down!
I think most of the trees that look like they need to come down belong to landowners.....don't think the council would dare go against health and safety!

same problem with top our our steep hill road Lulu - the trees are very much alive though - but growing into a busy 60 MPH road!!

Ugh ... look at all that snow lying about :o(
I hope it won't stay like that for long.
I hope someone does something about those trees soon. Not a good idea to leave them alone.

If the tree is hanging over the road, ring the Council and say the three magic words (Health and Safety) - that should do the trick

Our local authority get out within hours of trees
falling onto the grass verges. It must vary in different parts of the country.
Always worth sending your County Councillor an email and printing up the reply.

The hedge belongs to us and the trees were in the hedge so our responsibility
Its the same as maintaining the roadside hedges they are the landowners responsibility
I planted daffodil bulbs in the grass verge but if the council mow them down before they have properly died down I can,t stop them.....

Linda I suggest that your neighbour reads the advice given in the following link. I suspect she has been given a verbal answer to a question put to an official over the phone. She needs to make a planning application to remove the tree which will give her a written answer. Taking down trees is a dangerous business and taking it down can cause as many problems as leaving it. She needs proper advice from an expert. http://www.accessglasgow.org/en/OnlineServices/Environment/Glasgows+Trees.htm

We are in a conservation area Scotsgran. It was the tree surgeon who said the tree was dangerous. He used to work for the council but the guy who came out disagreed. They did get it in writing but there was such a carry on they have now moved house. Bit extreme to get away from a tree!!

When I worked in London there was a beautiful Acacia tree in the garden opposite ours. It was home to many a bird and especially the wood pigeon. How lovely to hear their cooing in London. It was massive and obviously took some light from the new neighbours next door and they wanted it down. I asked them why they bought the house if they thought their light was blocked. I told my boss that the day that tree came down I would leave!! Well my boss (I was his carer) sadly died, but he was 87! I left and a week later the tree was cut down. I must admit it did lift the slabs in our garden but it gave me hours of happiness watching all the birds.

Councils usually won't do something until they h ave to, which is usually *after* an accident has happened and someone's got hurt (so many old newspaper stories about them not putting a controlled crossing in until *after* a kid's been hit by a car). I suppoe they have to watch the money, and a dead tree could stay up for years ...

In severe gales a live tree in full leaf is more likely to come down than a dead one odd as it may seem.

That's interesting Moongrower. How come?

I'd presume that a tree in full leaf offers more for the wind to get hold of than a dead tree with empty branches?

Thats very true, was it the gales in the south october 1987?
The trees hadn't lost their leaves and great swathes of the south lost beautiful trees......it was explained I think as a sail catching the wind, incredibly powerful

It does Fran a beautiful live oak in full leaf was brought down in gales near here a few years ago completely blocking the road but harming no one. Mean while a dead oak that had sat at the edge of a field for many years ws not affected at all. Live ash trees are prone to drop branches in strong winds too.

I saw a live oak yesterday on the edge of the Savernack forest. Must be ancient, it's girth was huge. Took a pic. I might post it later!

please!

We had a large fir tree come down during those high winds....the leaves acted as a sail. The wind will just go through trees without leaves.

Yes it will Linda

and what won't bend will break - mind you, doubt any tree in leaf could bend enough to avoid breaking in a high enough wind!

Posted the oak Fran!