We had our tree surgeons in today - not the day I would have chosen as it was blowing a gale and raining; I was surprised when they turned up. I suppose they have to try to do something when it's blowy or they'd be at home all winter!

They're dismantling a large Griselinia at the back of the Heron Pond. It lost a big limb one calm summer day some years ago; it fell into the pond between two old people walking over the bridge, fortunately not touching either of them. It was about 18" thick and they would certainly have been killed. We immediately had the tree severely pruned to take a lot of the weight off it, but it was beginning to crack in one or two places again so I had no choice but to take it down. It will be cut to the ground - it's about 5ft across at ground level - and I hope it will regrow, as it's going to leave a very big hole in one of our windiest corners. That's life.