Martin solves itchy problem for the BBC
A voracious creature covered in millions of irritant hairs devouring the vegetation of southern England may sound like something from Doctor Who, but it's actually only a caterpillar.
Martin Williams of CWC (London North West) is the latest of several franchisees based in the south who has been asked to tackle infestations of the caterpillar of the Brown Tail Moth.
“I was called in by Scotscape Ltd. who carry out grounds maintenance for the BBC because the caterpillars were decimating shrubs, trees and hedges at one of the BBC's sites in Wood Lane,” said Martin.
“They eat everything. The Hawthorn hedges and ornamental Acer trees looked a mess and they were also having a go at the shrubs - even those with thick waxy leaves.”
Martin used his Stihl mist blower to apply Decis, a Pyrethroid insecticide which is effective against a wide range of insect pests but does not affect beneficial insects such as lacewings and bees. He chose to do the job in the evening when fewer people were about after warning notices had been put up earlier in the day.
“I am told that the caterpillars would have been dead within the hour,” said Martin. “It certainly made a change from all the total herbicide work we do at this time of year.”
The Brown Tail Moth lays 200-300 eggs on the leaves of trees and shrubs in late summer. When the caterpillars hatch and start to feed the larvae build white 'tents' in which between 50 and 2000 individuals spend the winter. In spring the caterpillars emerge and eat everything in sight until they are approximately 1.5 inches (3.5 cm) long. At the end of the summer they moult, pupate and emerge as adult moths.
The caterpillar has tufts of ginger brown hairs and two orange/red spots near the tail - hence its nickname, "Woolly Bear".
As well as chomping their way through foliage, hairs from the caterpillars can cause irritation to the skin, which can develop into a severe rash. The eyes can also be badly affected. They can be a particular probem to people who are are asthmatic, suffer from hay fever, have sensitive skin, or suffer from eczema. They should not be handled even when dead.
Although the moths are mainly a problem in the south - particularly along the coast - they are occasional visitors in other parts of the country and Sherwood Forest's famous oaks were thought to be at risk last year.
Hogweed proves a tough task
A forest of giant hogweed on both banks of the River Brett in Suffolk proved a tougher challenge than expected for franchisee Rod Thompson of CWC (East Anglia).
Rod lined up his neighbour Peter Moore of CWC (Essex) to give him a hand and the pair set about the job, hindered by inaccessible river banks, waist high nettles, impenetrable undergrowth and boggy ground with a week of torrential rain thrown in for good measure. Rod was hired by Lord Brocklebank of Giffords Hall to tackle the problem on his estate.
“The infestation was on both banks of the river and there were a couple of areas like fields of hogweed - there was a lot,” said Rod. “When we went to look at it we weren't at all sure how we were going to get at it because of inaccessibility and boggy ground, but we hoped we would be able to spray most of it from the boat. I don't think anyone has ever been down the river - we got stuck in an overhanging tree after about 20 metres! We also had to spray a lot of it on foot.”
When they got caught in torrential rain the two intrepid sprayers had a job to scramble up the steep river bank and by the time they had walked the considerable distance to their vehicle, both were soaked to the skin! The boat was abandoned for a week until the rain stopped and when Rod and Peter returned they found it had done them one favour - turning boggy ground where access by boat had been impossible into a body of water deep enough to navigate.
“Rod brought me in because it was a two-man job - he couldn't handle the boat and do the spraying as well,” said Peter. ”In fact we needed three people at times and my son lent a hand. It has been hard work but we did have a few laughs. It is a really beautiful place for wildlife - I spotted an otter swimming under a bridge.“
Despite all the obstacles, Rod and Peter did get the job done. The effects of the glyphosate - applied using air inclusion and long-throw nozzles and 3m and 5m lances - were already very much apparent, said Rod.
“We think we've got more than 90 per cent of it first time around, which is better than we thought we could achieve. I made it clear to the land owner that we would have to look at it again next year - at least we will know how to get at it next time.”
Rod said although they had made inroads into the hogweed on Lord Brocklebank's estate, there was still more of it further upstream near Shelley. “We will be fighting a losing battle if something isn't done about it but we have explained the position and the landowners are trying to put pressure on the Environment Agency to take some action.”
Ian parcels up developers' giant knotweed problem
The careful and painstaking task of excavating Japanese knotweed has been going on side by side with the hustle and bustle of a busy building site in Middlesbrough.
Under the watchful eye of CWC franchisee, Ian Hayman, 400 cubic metres of soil and plant material have been excavated and encapsulated within a membrane parcel which will be buried under a car park.
All around him, developers have been pressing on with putting in the footings for new apartments and houses in the grounds of The Highfield Hotel.
“We've been on the case since last year, but it's still been a rush job,” said Ian. “The knotweed was all around the perimeter for about four metres and it had a fair old root system.”
The developers have been using their machines for the excavation with Ian closely supervising. “A month or two ago we took some trees down and marked out how far we thought the rhizomes were going to extend and excavated until we were as sure as we could be that we had got it all. The excavated material had to be buried - which we've done in a four metre deep hole lined with Visqueen membrane.”
“The joins have to be double taped so we have effectively created a giant bag which - in line with Environment Agency guidelines - will be covered with a capping layer of two metres of soil - if it wasn't in a bag it would be five metres.”
Digging such a deep hole raises health and safety issues and the sides of the pit had to be sloped to reduce the chances of collapse.
Ian said working at such close quarters with the developers had not been without its stresses.
“Working on a busy building site means having to time things exactly right,” he said. But he had developed a good rapport with the company and they seemed very happy with what was being done. “You can excavate and think you have it clean and still some rhizome can remain,” he said.
“But there comes a point where you have to have to accept that you have taken out as much as is reasonably practicable. You have to get it into perspective - knotweed is a serious problem, but it's not life threatening. And I'm not going to run off with the cheque and then wash my hands of the job - and I'd like to think no-one in CWC would do that.”
Ian said one of the digger operators had been amazed to see Knotweed rhizome narrow down to 25mm as it squeezed through a join in a manhole, and then take off again.
“He was dumbfounded - it truly is an amazing plant,” said Ian.
Rob's latest weapon in war against weeds on the line
CWC Cotswold's new track spraying kit may not win prizes for style or beauty, but it's proving a practical solution to the challenge of killing weeds on railway lines.
The "rare looking machine" is Rob Merrett's newest weapon in the fight against weeds and with a top speed of 12mph, it's cut spraying time for him and his team from a day to just three hours. “It was designed by a friend of mine and was successfully used, after a couple of teething problems, on the Gloucestershire & Warwickshire Railway,” said Rob.
Rob has been spraying the privately-owned railway which runs the 14 miles between Toddington and Cheltenham, for 15 years. “We have used various methods in the past to tow the trolley, but they haven't been very satisfactory so I commissioned this from a friend,” he said.
“It has railway wheels fixed to the back axle of the tractor which has been extended out. At the front, the railway wheels are attached to a frame. We can use the hydraulics to pick up the railway wheels, steer the tractor into position and once in position, lift the tractor wheels clear.”
The sprayer is equipped with long throw nozzles which create a spray pattern to cover the track and a strip either side. The Cotswold team recently completed the spring spray with Tordon, diuron and glyphosate and will return in autumn for a top up spray.
The Gloucestershire & Warwickshire Railway is a popular tourist attraction, which offers evening trips with dinner, champagne breakfasts for race goers heading to Cheltenham Racecourse and Thomas the Tank Engine trips for children. They are planning to extend their track to Broadway next year and eventually reach Stratford - if so the new equipment will really start to earn its keep. The kit does all fit onto one trailer - if anyone's interested in hiring it, give Rob a ring.
CWC reaches new heights
A 44-metre truck-mounted access platform and a head for heights were the essential ingredients of a job undertaken in Glasgow city centre by Steve Bearne of CWC (Scotland North West).
The owners of two derelict buildings were concerned that Buddleia plants growing up on the rooftops and window ledges were loosening coping stones and other masonry. Not wanting any unsuspecting passers-by to be hit by falling debris, they called in Steve and his team to remove the offending Buddleia.
While Steve and operative Alex Noble stayed on terra firma directing traffic, his right hand man Alan McGeachie worked off the platform.
“At one point Alan had to get out onto a wall and although I knew he was firmly attached to the platform by a safety harness at all times, I had to shut my eyes once or twice,” said Steve.
In an operation which took two days, Alan first cut down the well-grown plants with loppers before painting the stumps with Timbrel. Steve said this method of treating Buddleia at ground level had had good results.
Steve said his client arranged permits to park the platform in the street and although the platform and parked cars blocked the road at times, traffic was prevented from getting through for just an hour each day.
The properties belong to Selfridges who are hoping to develop them, but Steve said he thought their plans were being delayed by the fact that the buildings are listed.
