Sneaky Twilight Tree Collections

 Large Birch

For some sites, which I intend to get planted with trees; tall dense undergrowth, such as Rose-bay-willow-herb, Bramble or Stinging Nettle, occupies the areas in big established super-clumps and gets so tall and thick in the Summer, as to smother and kill any smaller trees, which might be planted amongst it.  So today's mission, should I choose to accept it; is to collect tall Birch trees.

Birch are generally quite spindly trees, and more can be gathered in one bag, than most other types of tree, of the same height.  It is more efficient therefore, if I transform clumps of large weedy perennials into clumps of Birch.  The Birch have got to go somewhere, so I let nature show me where to put them.

The trees I am collecting today range in height from five to nine feet (1.5 - 3 metres).  I then trim them down to about five foot (1.5 meters), trying to ensure, despite the lack of daylight; that I cut them back to healthy buds and not just bare trunk.  Birch are one type of tree, which really likes to have buds to grow from in the spring, but some other species of trees, such as Willow will grow quite happily, how ever far they are cut back.

It is better to collect Tall trees later because they tend to look a bit dodgy, tied on to the back of a motorbike, particularly when they are so long, as to drag slightly along the ground.  The roads on Dartmoor are very quiet, at that time of night, but it is sensible to take as little risk as possible.

Normally I collect trees in the late afternoon, just before it starts to get dark, but often for big trees; I will conduct the whole operation during twilight and/or darkness hours.  This is obviously far more difficult, but at least then all people can see, as I drive past them, is headlights.

Getting Darker

Twilight is a time of the day, which only lasts for that brief transition, between day and night, as the last light from the sun slips behind the planet.  Once the darkness has come; then my work becomes just that little bit more tricky, although my eyes do become accustomed to the changing light.

The main problem is always loosing things and having to spend time searching for the spade or my pile of trees, with the limited light, from my mobile phone.  I never bring a torch, I don't even have one!   

I find I loose things far more often, when I am planting trees, to when I am collecting them, but it is always good to take measures to minimise the risk.  One measure is to select a stash spot.  Somewhere secluded and easily recognisable, such as by a land mark or feature, like a rock or a tree, but nothing interesting enough to attract people to it, and somewhere out of sight.

A good advantage of doing this in the dark is that anyone else I see, which is extremely rare; would possibly be on some kind of secret mission of their own and probably wouldn't bother me, even if they did know I was there.

On the few occasions, where I do see people out at night, they always seem to have a torch and a dog.  This gives me the advantage of seeing them and hearing them before they get anywhere near me and it gives me time to stop what I am doing, stash all my trees and tools safely and then attempt to either innocently walk past them or to hide and get down wind of their dog.

Career  Change

I am moving house very soon, to a new area, but not all that far from here.  When I move; I am going to treat myself to a van.

My six years with my motorbike have been great.  I have collected many trees with its assistance, certainly allot more than the bicycle, which preceded it.  But with a van I could collect allot more trees, be able to bring more tools and equipment with me and turn up warm and dry, instead of shivering and often soaking wet.  Motorbikes are great in traffic jams and rush hour, but they're not remotely weatherproof.

My work is almost complete, where I have been living.  I shall miss my woods and my garden.  But it is time for me to move on.

I am going to start up an Aquaponics business, for which I need to be off the national park, so I can put up some poly tunnels, without the strict planning restraints, also I need the revenue from selling my house to finance my business venture.  I will have to get used to living in a caravan.  I am quite looking forward to it actually.

Up until now I have been working as a gardener, with a gardening round and regular customers.  The people I worked for were all very nice, but I could not stand the poverty, in the Winter, when there was very little work.  Also being out in other peoples gardens, doing manual labour all day; meant that on the few dry days, when I did have a day off; the last thing I wanted to be doing, was digging my own vegetable patch or cutting my own hedges.  Gardening is my biggest hobby.  Whilst I spent my days toiling in other people's gardens, my own garden just slowly went to ruin, which was very disheartening and unfavourable for job satisfaction. 

I have made a promise to my self, that however skint I ever become in the future, or how ever desperate for money, that I ever find myself; I will never do gardening, for other people again.

Gathering Hazels

No spade today

Did I mention that I melted my rucksack, the other day; on my mates wood-burner?

I put it there to dry & didn't realise that wood-burners got that hot.  I thought they were the 'live in a bus' equivalent of a radiator, but no!  It melted quite fast!

That meant that I couldn't bring my spade with me today on my Dart Valley Tree collecting mission, to collect Hazels.

I decided it wouldn't be very safe, tied on the back of my motorbike with bungees, for a thirty mile round trip collecting Hazels.  I just would have to be a bit more careful pulling them up; getting my hands right underneath them, to help prevent too many roots tearing and not being able to get any larger specimens.

Despite the inconvenience of not having my trustee spade with me; I did get quite allot of Hazels and Dog roses + one Spindle, so I was happy.

The advantage of having no spade was; how much less paranoid I felt, as I dropped every thing and pretended to be looking at the view or examining some kind of plant life, whenever a car or some people went by, but it is so much easier and better to use a spade.  

I suppose I will need to invest again in a nice new rucksack and then I must remember not to melt it.

Town Tree Collecting

 
Today I am making the most of a bad situation; My bike's fan belt broke yesterday and now my bike is being fixed by my neighbour, Carl.  This meant that I had to buss-it into Tavistock today, to shop and do other important things.
Unfortunately public transport in the UK is among some of the most dire in Europe.  Today I had to wait six hours, for the bus back home, but I put this time to good use and collected some Trees.

Tavistock sits in a deep valley, coming off the moors and, like this area show; is full of many little undevelopable corners, where nature has taken over.

Of course; I cannot collect nearly as many trees as I could have done, with the bike, but still enough to really impact the places where I will plant them.

Invasive Weeds
One problem with these urban sites is the sheer quantity of invasive weeds, which have escaped originally from irresponsible people's gardens.  Here this mainly consists of Rhododendron, Cherry-Laurel, Sycamore and Cotoneaster.
Where possible; I make it my policy to pull these up.  I am always extremely vigilant not to collect and plant any and always look through what I have collected before planting them out, especially if I will be planting them at night.

Carting trees on Public Transport

"Daddy.  Whys that man got all those trees?"

   Was the only verbal comment made by passengers on this twenty minute bus ride home, across the moor.

There was a bit of non verbal communication though, especially from the lady in the seat, directly in front of me, when her hat became momentarily caught in a Blackthorn spike.

My bike should be fixed by tomorrow, so I shouldn't have to do this again for a while.

Public Transport is dire!