Tree surgery

As a defender of trees, my ears are sensitive to the sound that a chain saw makes. When I heard one going this morning whilst washing up, I therefore went to investigate.

No panic: the tops of our neighbour's sycamores were being taken out. Dowdeswell Forestry Services was the name on the lorry, the firm owned by a Mr. Huggett. (What's the opposite of nominative determinism?) We used to get our Christmas trees from Dowdeswell I recall, and our three boys were at school with the three Huggetts - or were there four?

Today, I spoke to Richard, who kindly let me take some of the wood chippings to put on our garden. "Leave them a couple of months, or they'll take the nitrogen from your shrubs," he warned.

I put fresh shavings round the plum trees last year: perhaps this is why we had such a poor crop.