Save our precious trees from the council chainsaw
THE destruction of thousands of trees across the country (Mail) shows local authorities do not enforce the same conservation policy on themselves that they do on others.
Preservation orders are regularly placed on trees and hedgerows, and rightly so. But some councils flagrantly disregard the rules.
It’s time that the responsibility of caring for trees and hedgerows was removed from councils and handed to the independent Woodland Trust.
Having spent a lifetime in the construction industry, I know what is expected when it comes to protecting trees and hedges.
But councils and utility companies can ride roughshod over the regulations.
The requirements of county council landscape architects across the country are ignored. Roots and canopies are damaged, resulting in the death of the plants. Builders destroy root systems by excavating too close to trees, and they are long gone by the time the damage becomes apparent.
Money comes before anything, so if a tree is in the way, it’s a case of reach for the chainsaw.
BARRY DAVIES, Whittle-le-Woods, Lancs.
Protect the land
PHOTOS showing the devastation after avenues of trees were felled (Mail), and the case of a council cutting down 800 saplings by mistake, show how vital it is to pick the right sites for clean-ups.
Land needs to be designated and served with a protection order so copses are preserved.
R. J. PIDGEON, Waterlooville, Hants.
CONGRATULATIONS on promoting environmental awareness. The Tree Angel campaign will enhance our landscape and enrich our lives.
I hope it will transform our beautiful country into a green and pleasant land that everyone loves. The next step is to educate the destructive, uncaring councils that are removing hundreds of trees around the country.
SHIRLEY CLANCY, Hook, Hants.
Ravaged by HS2
THE Mail’s Tree Angel campaign is commendable, especially considering the fact that HS2 is planning the largest deforestation programme since the war.
More than 100 ancient woodlands will be destroyed or damaged, devastating the complex ecosystem for 250 species of flora and fauna. Why are we letting this happen? ANTHONY DAVENPORT,
Malpas, Cheshire.
Bonkers for conkers
FIVE years ago, I was driving along a rural road when I saw conkers strewn on the ground. They were being driven over and squashed, which caused the boy in me to take over.
I pulled up and rescued a bagful. Two sprouted and I potted them up. One survived and I planted it out. This year, I collected my first conker from this tree. Needless to say, I have potted it up, too! I will not see this
tree mature, but I do have enormous pride as a city boy from Liverpool who now has my very own conker tree.
I have planted walnuts and I am sowing hazel, filbert and chestnuts, all gathered in the wild. DENNIS JENKINS, Barnstaple, Devon.
IT IS all very well for Monty Don and Prince Charles to declare we should all plant more trees, but have they not noticed that the average garden is small? Many families would be hard pressed to fit in even one tree.
Planting trees needs careful planning as they can grow to such a height that they can block out sunlight. As for the roots, they do not stop at the fence and can cause damage to drains. A tree surgeon does not come cheap, either.
Mrs G. REYNOLDS, Eastbourne, E. Sussex.
Consider neighbours
YEARS ago, our neighbours planted a silver birch beside their boundary fence. Today, it’s a lovely tree, but it is the bane of my life because it is enormous and in the wrong position. In the summer, it blocks the afternoon and evening sunshine from our patio.
ROB EVERITT, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex.
Apple? Cor!
I STILL have the heartbreaking Mail article from 2013 showing the good folk of Flixton, Greater Manchester, after the beautiful 50-year-old cherry tree on their village green had been reduced to a stump on the inevitable grounds of health and safety.
I’m proud to have an eating apple tree in my garden, which has produced a record crop this year. As a lad, I climbed the cooking apple tree — which has yielded more than 100lb of Bramleys — and I still do!
I also have a small cherry tree and a row of hazelnut trees, under which I recline in the summer.
TERRY HICKMAN, Southampton, Hants.
Desecrated park
IT’S so upsetting that despite all the calls to plant trees, petrol firm Esso is set to desecrate Farnborough’s Queen Elizabeth Park to install the Southampton to London pipeline.
It is planning to cut down one third of the trees. These will be replaced by ‘low-value scrub planting’, as no trees are allowed within 100ft of the pipeline.
PETER FRANCIS, Farnborough, Hants.
SEVERAL years ago, my wife and I collected and grew 230 acorns in pots from the ancient trees growing in our garden.
In 2016, when they were 2ft high, we contacted our local park, which was delighted to replant them. Since then we have grown another 297 trees in pots, including oak and horse chestnuts from conkers collected by our two granddaughters from their school.
But this time the park said no to a donation. Would any group like to take them on?
D. J. WALLIS, Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria.
WHY not encourage schoolchildren to collect conkers and acorns to grow in pots?
The result could be millions of trees that conservation groups could use to reforest the countryside free of charge.
JON SEBASTIAN, West Bridgford, Notts.
Haven under threat
AS WELL as planting saplings, we should be saving mature trees. My local council is proposing to build up to 280 homes in our village on a 12-acre wildlife area.
Some of the trees that would be lost are very old, and the site is a haven for butterflies, damselflies, bees, stag beetles, frogs, toads, slow worms, jays and woodpeckers.
It would be a tragedy if this planning proposal goes ahead and destroys the habitats of so many wild species.
SHEELAGH HOPE, Shepperton, Surrey.
I HAVE been a voluntary tree warden for more than 20 years and have planted vast numbers of trees, so I know a sapling takes a long time to become mature.
Unfortunately, many councils are felling trees for health-andsafety reasons, or to save money on maintenance. We need to stop this wholesale felling of beautiful mature trees.
DAVID POPE, Egham, Surrey.