Breezy Start To 2012

Last year is now old and I can't say 2011 will be memorable for its sunny weather. I have less garden or woodland photos than usual from the year but here are a couple of interesting shots for the record.

2011 was dominated by our second renovation of the water tower after the damage caused by a burst pipe. All is going well and works are very nearly complete. A company called "Jims Mowing" planted 2 large Yew trees at the door of the tower as well as a yew hedge at the back and trees in the woodland.

The yew trees were an effort to fit into the ground but with the uplighting and a chance to settle I think they will look good for many years to come.

The start of the year though will for ever more be marked by tales of damage caused by windy weather. At the water tower the damage was not too bad but we didn't escape either.

The wind speed was over 100 mph at times and our outdoor xmas tree blew over along with small items I never knew I had tucked away. Then all the lights went out! we had our power cut off.

The storm damage around us was quite striking with large trees and branches falling onto local power lines and one large tree lying across the now less-than-straight Eskbank sewer pipe. That will be an interesting repair I’m sure for Midlothian Council.

With a house that was shoe horned in between 3 large trees we were rightly concerned. My favourite of the 3 is the Beech and this type of tree is known to be at risk for limb loss. We had it surveyed pre build and crown lifted to take the weight off. All was good. The other 2 are Sycamore and again pruning works have lightened the top load and no damage ensued. Not so good for our direct neighbour when a tree from the tennis club lost a large limb and it fell inches from their car and onto their front gate and pillars.

 The calm after the storm now prevails and we took stock of any damage to our trees. A very very large Beech tree had snapped about 2 feet off the ground revealing an inner core of dark brown crumbling decay. The tree was lying near the edge to the steep drop to the river below, quite a distance from our house and in a little used area of the woodland.

Yesterday with the help of some expert chain saw users G and I managed to clear the ground and cut up the large limbs from the fallen tree to make the area safe although there's more to do. The main trunk is now lying safely at the edge. It looks stunning against the backdrop and it has created a long sitting out area with a lovely view.

Need a name for this new patch. Think I call it "The Beech".

The surrounding trees and the view beyond at this time of the year.