Ever footlocked with a hoover on your back?

Mark_B.

Mark_B.

Location
Basel, Switzerland
Well, I'm sure this is one of the more bizarre jobs of recent years... thought I'd share it with you folk.

For a number of years there's been an increase of a certain type of bug, Oxycarenus for all you boffs, on lime trees north of the alps. They've had it south of the alps for hundreds of years, but they don't have extensive lime tree alleys the way there are further north. A slight increase in temperature was enough to allow them to spread throughout europe.

The critters don't actually damage the trees, but they're kinda gross, the cover the tree trunk in a beetle carpet, especially the underside. When they're fully grown (3 to 4 mm length) they fly and apparently the council here had a shedload of complaints because of bugs invading peoples houses.. admittedly not very pleasant.

Soooo... some entymologist told the coundil not to worry, the cold winter would kill the beasties. Well it hasn't, and the guys realised, that as it gets warmer - and the bugs more mobile - that "we have a problem"! So they asked the arb association for help to do something about the insects. They tried steaming them, high pressure and hot water. What worked best was sucking them up, i.e. hoovering, you end up with a sort of beetle hash in the hoover bag.

That's what we've been doing the last couple of days. The beetles are back on the first trees we did on monday allready, doesn't make me feel like I'm doing anything very useful, but hey, I guess that's politics for you.

... hey, I think I just felt something crawling up my neck! /forum/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

So you get up the tree and start hoovering, you're wading through these beetles and you're covered in them. What can I say... bizarre is probably really the most appropriate term.

Check out the picture: Bug busters in action!
 

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... Footlocking with a hoover on my back. I didn't promise you too much, did I.

Even worse than carrying a rope with you for aerial rescue!
 

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yes, I suppose I forgot to mention that all the while you're dragging a cable behing you down to the generator.

Adding insult to injury, you get submitted not only to the usual "hey look, there's monkey in the trees!" bullshit, no it's "hey look there's monkey WITH HOOVERS in trees!". Ouch!
 
... oh yes, by the way two more things I forgot:

There's a budget for 600 hours of hoovering./forum/images/graemlins/bigcry.gif

And the whole reason for this post was to be able to say at the end of it: This work really sucks!
 
we do a job where we have to poke crows nests out of trees around the airport. apparently 4 planes have to return to UK airports each year after an engine stalls after ingesting a bird.

its ok before the eggs hatch, but after that you end up getting covered in dead chicks, crap and the like. oh and when they get bigger the chicks hold on. and you have to chase some half flying half hopping chick around the top of a tree.

all this happens on wood that is debatable weather it is strong enough to hold you. is it 4" or 3 1/2" hmmm. the groundsmans job is simply to chase them around as the chicks hit ground and run.

jamie
 
That's about the craziest treework I've ever heard of. /forum/images/graemlins/crazy.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]
Jamie,

You'd better hide this post before PETA gets ahold of ya! /forum/images/graemlins/afightee.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

Don't ya mean "PETB?" You know, bugs? /forum/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
This is terrible... just back from another day of sucking!

What more can I tell you? Add snow to really make a potent mix - we had a shed-load of it yesterday - and I can tell y'all, it hasn't improved the job.

Anybody fancy a bit of hoovering? /forum/images/graemlins/giveup.gif
 
Mark

I worked in the Netherlands from '97 to'99 in the tree industry. My first month was spent injecting Oak trees along the highways for the Procession Caterpillar (Eikenprocessierups) that rears its' ugly head en masse in the Spring. If I remember right, this insect is about one centimetre long and is covered in thousands of tiny hairs that can be dispensed randomly and give folks that encounter them incredible allergies ranging from itchy skin to burning eyes to severe and life-threating breathing problems! I got the itch!
The idea was that on a dry day, due to more rapid transpiration, the syringes would empty fast and the serum would move up and into the leaves. The caterpillars when emerging, would eat the leaves and die. Unforunately, the trees would come under direct attack before the insects would succumb to the dose!

The year following, they brought in a huge vacuum cleaner/hoover-type deal attached to a truck and attempted to suck the insects off the leaves, however of course the leaves went too. I'm not sure if they've continued with this method, but it was entertaining to see! And devastating to the trees, although the next season brought more leaves.

Hopefully your method of climbing individual trees with a dustbuster strapped to your back has the desired effect and you can control the infestation. Science and research has a long way to go...

All the best.

Kevin.
 
Hey, you're right, Kevin, I remeber seeing pictures of that stunt.

Maybe it was Jelte , AKA "the flying dutchman", who told me about it. I never would have thought I'd get mixed up in something like that. I reckon you're right, though. The good thing about this method is that it's fairly easy going on the trees.

Speaking of the Netherlands... I really feel I should drop Jelte in it, by mentioning here that we have here, on the Buzz Board, a spanking new "El Presidente" of the KPB, the dutch arb association. Yes, all hail Jelte!

I wonder if he's going to force all members to get tattooed and pierced now? /forum/images/graemlins/jamminz.gif
 
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