The watering season is now well under way but for a variety of reasons we have had difficulty in fielding a full team every week. The record number of trees to be watered this year requires the bowser to be loaded three times but, with a reduced team, we have struggled to deliver more than two bowser loads, with the result that many of the trees have been watered only once a fortnight. The occasional showers during the spring kept the trees going but the onset of the current hot dry spell presents real danger.
So we were very glad that we were able to assemble almost a full team last Thursday and to water every tree. Most trees are coping well but a significant number are clearly stressed. We gave these extra water and hope that they will revive but only time will tell. As usual we also extended our tender care to a number of trees planted, but not watered, by other agencies. Some of these we fear will be lost. But the fight goes on.
Besides the lack of rain, the main threat which our trees face at this time of year is from the oversized council mowing machines. It is clearly difficult to control the machines when trying to mow close to our trees and the result is that all too often the blades collide with the cages, damaging the posts and often opening the cages so that rabbits and muntjac can get at the bark. Below is an illustration of damage to a tree in Flora Road, which we discovered last week, where the mower blades have caught the cage, twisted it round the tree and broken off one of the posts. To save the tree we shall have to dismantle the cage and replace the post and wire mesh (paid for by Witham Town Council).
One solution to this problem is of course for the staff using the mowers to take a little more care. However, there is another option which can be seen at the Memorial Park which we have planted between Bramble Road and Honeysuckle Way. There the mowing staff helpfully consulted us on whether we wanted them to mow between the trees and were happy with our preference to keep the mowing machines at a safe distance. The result is that the trees sit in a grassy meadow and look all the more striking for it. There are other areas where we have planted trees which would benefit from a similar policy without diminishing the space available for sport, dog walking and other activities. The modern British belief that deserts of closely mown grass are ‘neat’ may militate against this idea but with the constant loss of countryside to housing and other developments the idea of urban meadows with wide mown paths for access is well worth considering.
We hope to have a full team for the watering run on Thursday in order to ensure we can water all the trees. Meanwhile, no doubt against the preference of many people, we shall be praying for rain!
Richard Hawkes
11 July 2022
