Frequently Asked Questions

Why don’t you “tidy up” trees that have dead wood and ivy on them?
Last Updated 6 years ago

Ivy, mistletoe, standing dead wood, rot, knot holes, hollows, snags, moss, lichens, etc. are seriously important contributors to biodiversity. As well as adding to species-richness and habitat diversity in themselves, they provide exceptional ecosystem benefits in terms of food, shelter and other resources for a host of invertebrates and other animals as well as those that prey on them. Because it is so damaging ecologically, we never “tidy up” trees unless there is a proven and material safety risk or presence of a serious pathogen verified to our satisfaction by a suitably qualified ecological scientist/silviculturist and biologist. When branches or trees do have to be felled, we like to use these as ecological log pile habitats or, safely upended in the ground, as standing dead wood.

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