Dr Duncan Slater
Nobby Clarke, Western Branch Chair
We haven’t had the pleasure of Duncan’s company for quite some time, so this visit was most welcome.
When we originally talked to him about coming to speak to us, the suggested title of this event was ‘Duncan Talks Trees’. That left us wondering what the day would be like – and we weren’t disappointed.
He started with a ‘soft’ introduction, where he went through some of his ‘trees through time’ images. For those who have already seen Duncan’s postings online or his articles in the ARB Magazine, this concept will be familiar. The point is to try to look at things in ‘tree time’ and get a better understanding of how trees behave or react in certain circumstances and over time. We were treated to several images of trees with what appeared to be large wounds, catastrophic failures or in some cases catastrophic pruning, and what subsequently happened over the proceeding years, decade or in some cases more. It was clear that we cannot make assumptions from what we initially see, and some trees are perfectly capable of coming back from what appear to be almost unsurvivable issues. As Duncan pointed out, some trees that most would have condemned and removed can actually recover to become fully functional members of the tree population. It is a sobering point.
Following a brief break, Duncan introduced us to his research and discussions around CODIT, a topic that is certain to provoke debate and hopefully a look at how the model works, particularly in the face of more recent research into the way trees respond to wounding, pests, diseases and disorder.
We then had a fascinating discussion around ‘snags’ (monoliths!) and the lack of general guidance on how to create and manage them. Duncan has carried out a lot of research on this, particularly looking at it from the perspective of keystone species such as woodpeckers and the sort of snag sizes and locations they appear to prefer. Hopefully this will lead to better general guidance for arborists in the creation of these features, whilst at the same time reducing potential risk and creating better habitat for many species.
After lunch, we revisited one of Duncan’s favourite topics: forks. We went on a tour of the grounds of Devon County Hall and in particular some of its magnificent Lucombe oaks. Duncan was able to show us many things of interest such as natural bracing, included bark, junction failures etc. to practically illustrate the presentations – a really illuminating guided tour around the world of branches and forks. The day was capped off by attempting to break hornbeam forks over a cuppa. Not many people can say that!
A great day. Huge thanks to Duncan for taking the time to come and talk to us. His patience, wisdom and passion for the subject always come across, providing many insights, but also posing questions for the future. A huge thankyou also to Bob Stevenson at Devon County Hall and the staff there for organising such a great event and looking after us so well.
Dr Duncan Slater
This article was taken from Issue 203 Winter 2023 of the ARB Magazine, which is available to view free to members by simply logging in to the website and viewing your profile area.