Tree Planting 2009/2010

After 6 months of digging, cutting, drivelling, hammering and pneumatic drilling the planting season for Gristwood & Toms is almost over. We have planted 5000 trees in Bexley, Bromley, Enfield, Harrow, Hillingdon, Ealing and Worcester, constructed 500 tree pits and have extended our area to the surrounds of Birmingham. It has come with its challenges and we are now becoming experts at planting ever large trees (see picture below of the one we planted for Enfield in Turkey Street). The standard of planting has seen a big improvement over the last couple of years although we will continue to strive to find even better methods for next season. (April 2010)

Top Teams

Mick Coomber is our Quality Auditor and he spends much of his time visiting the tree teams on-site to ensure that the most stringent Health & Safety requirements are being met and that work is being carried out to the highest standards. We recently introduced two initiatives to encourage and reward the efforts of our tree teams; Team of the Quarter and Most Improved Team and Mick is tasked with deciding who most deserves the awards. “The decision wasn’t easy as several crews were in the frame” says Mick. “The crew who I have finally selected as the Team of the Quarter is Dave Hooper, Jak Middleton and Sean Tierney from Birmingham. Their work is being done consistently well with emphasis being placed on accuracy of pruning, care of surrounding areas and structures, good site management and pride in the work they do. What swung it against the other crews who are producing almost equal standards of pruning was the job they made of the trees in Dagger Lane: it was a whole road of well pruned trees and the site was managed well and left in a clean and tidy condition. The most improved crew also derives from Birmingham and the award goes to Mark Postlethwaite, Chris Waller and Martin Waller. These three have developed from a fairly average group of people who worked together into a well organised team who seem to feed off each other as far as producing good work in a safe and organised manner is concerned. It’s great to meet people who are genuinely happy in their work and enjoy doing a good job”. Congratulations to all our winners. (April 2010)

Contract News

We are delighted to confirm that we have been awarded a significant new long term contract with the London Borough of Bexley. The contract, to manage the trees belonging to the Borough’s highways, parks, schools and cemeteries, is in place for a nine year period, subject to performance reviews every three years.

Managing Director Andy Toms said: “This is a major gain for the company and helps secure the future for our South London staff. Tendering for new contracts is a complicated procedure and I’d like to congratulate all of the team here who have been involved in the process”. During the first three years of the contract we’re also committed to plant approximately 750 new trees in the area, which will help to make Bexley one of London’s greener suburbs. (April 2010)

Hope for Horse Chestnuts

Scientists are one step closer to curing a disease threatening to wipe out Britain’s conker trees. Bleeding canker arrived in the country 20 years ago from Asia. Now around half the horse chestnut trees in Britain are infected and thousands have had to be felled. But a study by the Sainsbury Laboratory in Norwich, published in the online journal PLoS One, outlined the genome sequence of the bacteria that causes the disease, a discovery which could help scientists to develop a cure. (Daily Telegraph 20.4.2010)

Woodfuel Hub for North London

Gristwood &Toms have been awarded a Government-funded grant to develop North London’s official Woodfuel Hub. The grant is for capital equipment which will be used to help provide high grade wood chip and the Hub is to be established at our existing recycling plant at Shenley

This BioEnergy Infrastructure Scheme (BEIS) grant allows us to purchase a 3-way trommel screen (which will improve the size profiling of the wood chips currently being produced) and to build a covered store to reduce the moisture content of the chip. The market for premium wood fuel is currently still in its infancy but with the introduction of the Renewable Heat Incentive in April 2011 things could soon change and, as and when they do, we’ll be best placed to cope with the increase increase demand. (March 2010)

  Wood Fuel Hub

Careers Fair

In our efforts to create a wider market to tap into for recruitment we attended a Careers Fair at the Bonus Pastor School in Lewisham. There was a lot of genuine interest shown in our presentation by the students of the school. With luck, in a few years, we might be seeing a new influx of budding arborists joining us. In the meantime, as we bid for and win more contracts we will need more qualified staff. All those interested should click onto the ‘Who We Are’ section on this website and then onto ‘Recruitment’. (Feb 2010)

  Careers

Big Tree Planting

As Enfield Council’s Approved Tree Management Contractors, Gristwood & Toms were called upon to plant a large and unusual tree to enhance a rather unattractive area of park scrubland off the A10, alongside Turkey Street. The Pinn Oak tree, measuring over 40ft and weighing in excess of ten tons provided us with several logistical challenges, not least that of transportation. It was delivered on an arctic trailer and eventually lifted into the ground with the assistance of an 85-ton crane. As a focal point the tree has significantly improved the area already and when lit at night it’s a striking reminder to the people of Enfield of the positive changes that are taking place.

The Council is making every effort to visually improve the environment. As a part of the Enfield Gateway initiative, they have secured funding for the redevelopment of specific areas and the beautification of key routes in and out of the borough. This is not simply a makeover exercise: well-kept parks and clean, tree-lined streets add significantly to the quality of life enjoyed by local residents. We’re proud to play our part in this regeneration. (March 2010)

  Big Tree Planting

Making an Exhibition of Ourselves

IOG Saltex in September proved to be the perfect venue to unveil the company’s new branding and to launch two new services: Consultancy and Tree Planting. The weather held, in fact it was boiling on the first day, and that allowed us to demonstrate the Mala Underground Radar System and the PICAS Decay Investigation equipment in the open air.

At the stand our good friend Nick Obern entertained the crowds by putting on several Lumberjack Sportsmen demos, cross cutting and sawing logs against the speed of a chainsaw. No prizes for guessing who won! Nick certainly drew the crowds to the stand although word had already spread that Gristwood & Toms were back at Saltex (the first appearance there for several years) and a good number of people came deliberately to see us. Directors Dave Gristwood and Andy Toms were there, as were Jim Mead and Mark Lovejoy, with various guest appearances from other staff members from HQ.

Quite how successful the exhibition was for us is too early to tell. Lots of people attended, we met with several who were interested in what we were promoting and we made a lot of appointments with potential customers in both the public and private sectors – we’ll keep you posted as to what comes of them.

The main aim of appearing at the show was to let people know that we are a very professional company, with strong environmental policies, and a workforce that is second to none.

  The Saltex Stand

Our New Look

It may not have escaped your notice that we’ve undergone a bit of a makeover. We’ve got a more modern logo - combining the G of Gristwood with the T of Toms in a stylish letter contained within a green leaf. This logo will gradually replace the old one on all the company’s vehicles, workwear, stationery and signage. Currently it appears directly above the company name but in time we’re hoping that people will recognise the logo on its own, in the same way that we all recognise the BP logo nowadays without the name appearing underneath it. The logo will grow to be known as a symbol of quality and professional workmanship.

We’ve also created a new slogan “Managing Great Britain’s Trees”. This has been created to let people know that we are a national service and a sizeable firm.

Phase One Habitat Survey

(David Attenborough - eat your heart out!)

We’ve just had a full habitat survey report carried out at our 18 acre Shenley site. Sadly they didn’t discover any cave dwellers or dinosaurs but we do have a wide variety of wildlife to look after including muntjac deer, bats, foxes, snakes and moles, bird species and a pond that attracts dragonflies. We were hoping that it might contain great crested newts but none were found. We want to encourage more wildlife to the area and to provide a suitable habitat for British plants, flowers and trees.

  Shenley Head Office

Gang of the Quarter

We are introducing an award each quarter to the gang considered to be the most impressive. Judging will take into consideration work rate, tidiness, personal appearance and any acts considered to be above and beyond the call of duty. We are determined as a company to constantly improve our image and, if possible, to increase productivity and we will reward the best gang for their efforts. The winning team will be judged by our Quality Auditor, Mick Coomber.

  Mick Coomber

Supplies of cut down trees for natural play areas

We are delighted to be working with the charity, London Play, to ensure that supplies of quality tree trunks are available to all Play Builder boroughs. The company has available a wide variety of playful tree trunks in interesting and fun shapes and will ensure they are delivered in a state to be useful to play designers, with stubs of branches left on to provide vertical climbers or with branches left on one side for laying flat. There are always many big chunks and slices available that can be used immediately as seats, to jump across like stepping-stones or to hide in-between.

Trees and cut sections of trees are delivered to Shenley and can be viewed by appointment. Contact our site manager, Rob Reynolds, to arrange your visit.

Delivery can be arranged and will be charged for. Delivery will be only to offload at the edge of accessible hard standing. For any further preparation, such as creating a seating bench from a trunk, trimming to ensure stability, or on-site installation work, prices will apply. London Play is ‘working for a capital where all children can play’. You can find out more about their work by visiting www.londonplay.org.uk

And The Good News

Article written by Mark Kinver Copyright: BBC 2009

One of the UK's biggest landowners is embarking on a comprehensive survey to identify previously unrecorded ancient trees on its properties.

The National Trust hopes to find 40,000 of them during the three-year project.

Ancients trees provide unique habitats that support a wide range of rare species, which will be at risk if the trees are allowed to die, say experts.

The data will be fed into a national record, managed by the Woodland Trust, which is available online.

"Ancient trees can be thought of as the cathedrals of the natural world," said Ray Hawes, the National Trust's head of forestry.

"This new survey will provide us with the opportunity to understand more about these special trees in our care and map their exact location."

Volunteers will be used to survey the Trust's 25,000 hectares of woodlands, 200,000 hectares of woodland, and 135 parks.

Famous finds

A number of famous trees will be listed in the findings, including the apple tree that was said to have inspired Isaac Newton to develop the "notion of gravitation" in 1655, and a yew tree that featured in one of William Wordsworth's poems.

Apart from the stars of the aboricultural collection, the Trust's newly appointed ancient tree adviser Brian Muelaner said that it was an area that had been overlooked.

"Lots of individuals, particularly property staff, will know where their biggest trees are, and which ones are considered to be locally important," he told BBC News.

"But there has never been a co-ordinated assessment of all of them within the National Trust."

The UK has one of the highest proportion of ancient trees in Europe, and Mr Muelaner said that it was vital to effectively manage the unique habitats provided by the multi-centurions.

"These trees are remnants of our primeval forests," he explained.

"They are a direct link back to that time, so the biodiversity that is associated with those cannot be found anywhere else.

"If they are lost, then the dependent ecology - lichen, fungi, deadwood invertebrates - will suffer."

It can take about 250 years for a tree to become a suitable host for some lichens.

  Wordsworth's 'Yew Tree', The Lorton Yew,
  Cumbria

Farming fears

Once an ancient specimen has been identified, a management plan will be put in place to ensure it lives for as long as possible. Mr Muelaner said the main threat facing these trees was often from farming.

"Too often, arable fields are ploughed right up to the base of the trunk," he observed.

"Ploughing greatly damages the roots, while fertilisers will damage the mycorrhizal fungi, which are essential for a tree's uptake of nutrients and water.

"Even pesticides and the use of pharmaceuticals in cattle can have an impact".

As well as protecting ancient specimens, the Trust will also look at ways to ensure the dependent ecology is not lost.

"We need to get succession planting going very quickly if none is underway," Mr Muelaner stated.

"It takes hundreds of years to get the trees in the right conditions to support the rare and endangered species."

'Notable trees'

He said that the survey would also be recording "veterans" that show characteristics of an ancient tree - such as deadwood, holes and cavities that support a diverse range of species - and have a higher conservation value.

Trees that are considered to be culturally important will also be listed - for example, ones that were carved by US soldiers shortly before the D-Day landings in June 1944.

"Or it could be the Tolpuddle martyrs' tree, where they first met," Mr Muelaner explained.

"On its own, the sycamore tree is not that significant but because of its historical context, it is very important."

One of the challenges facing the team of volunteers will be identifying what trees are deemed ancient, as there is no fixed criteria.

The main working definition is an individual specimen that is very old in comparison to others of the same species.

For example, oaks in excess of 600 years are considered to be ancient, yet beech trees older than 300 years would also qualify.

However, calculating age based on appearance is not as simple as it sounds because factors such as location, soil, access to daylight, management techniques, affect the characteristics.

  The Tolpuddle Martyrs' Tree