Trees, Science and Opinion
16th October 2022
The unedifying events of the infamous Sheffield Tree Saga are now thankfully fading into history. Like many social events involving unrest and conflict, dramatic low points are often the catalyst for long term change for the better. This hope was very much in the air at the recent conference ‘Urban Trees in Sheffield’, which highlighted how far things have come since 2018. Showcasing new approaches and commitment to community involvement, in managing Sheffield’s street trees. It was a good-news event, […]
14th January 2022
Ash dieback disease is having a major impact to the UKs Ash trees, with losses of between 75% and 90% predicted. At AWA Tree Consultants we are having to adapt to this when undertaking tree surveys for planning in Yorkshire and the surrounding regions of Derbyshire and Lincolnshire. Ash dieback is impacting our tree surveys in two main ways. Firstly, in the extra focus on Ash when assessing the risk of harm to people or property, and secondly, in how […]
17th September 2021
Mark Johnston has worked as a tree contractor, tree consultant, tree officer and college professor. He has been a prominent figure within professional arboriculture for several decades, developing city-wide urban forest initiatives, influential policy, and urban forestry practice guides. Like many others in our profession, I was one of the thousands of students he taught over the years, being lucky enough to be one of the first students to undertake the Master of Science program in Arboriculture and Urban Forestry, […]
26th July 2021
A person who practices professional arboriculture is termed an Arboriculturalist / Arboriculturist. The different terms are often used interchangeably, but which one is the correct spelling? The Oxford English Dictionary has the noun of arboriculture as arboriculturist; likewise, the Collins dictionary refers to arboriculturist (they don’t list Arboriculturalist). Leading authorities within the industry are clear. The Terms and Definitions of the British Standard 5837:2012 refer to an arboriculturist (as a person who has, through relevant education, training and experience, gained […]
23rd October 2020
Lincolnshire was described in a BBC article this week as having the lowest tree cover in the county. But is this accurate? From our experience of regularly undertaking tree surveys in Lincolnshire, this doesn’t necessarily ring true. We review the claim and critically look at the reasons suggested for Lincolnshire’s low tree cover: The BBC article “Gardens help towns and cities beat countryside for tree cover” detailed research which estimated the percentage of tree cover in different parts of the […]
12th October 2020
Evidence showing that trees support mental wellbeing and stress relief.
26th June 2020
The Covid-19 pandemic has been described as perhaps the biggest global crisis of our generation, and one that will probably shape the world for years to come. The impact on healthcare systems, the economy, politics and culture are already noticeable. While the associated lockdown created virtual ghost-towns of most urban areas, there was an upsurge of people visiting nearby green spaces. For many people, the pandemic has led to a direct realisation of the profound value of local accessible green […]
21st September 2019
A few of the team from AWA Tree Consultants travelled down to the Arboricultural Association Midland Branch Seminar, held at the Hawkesyard Estate in Staffordshire. It was an excellent day of high-end arboriculture, with presentations from Jeremy Barrell and Dr. David Lonsdale – two leading expert witnesses in arboriculture. The day began with an open forum led by the audience, to discuss tree risk management. Questions fielded by Jeremy and David included: Ash dieback and tree risk. The requirement – […]
31st May 2019
8th January 2019
In Monty Python’s “Life of Brian” there is a famous scene where John Cleese’s character ‘Brother Reg’ is trying to incite his gang to rebel against the occupying Roman army. After a few minutes of debate, he utters the immortal line: “Alright! – but apart from the sanitation, medicine, education, wine, public order, irrigation, roads, fresh water system and public health, what have the Romans ever done for us?” Well, we could also add “The Sycamore” to this list. Although […]