[fairplay]

Hi Jason,

Yes I'm sure we have communicated before as we seem to have a lot in common.
If the owner wants to keep the felled wood to make into a log pile, then yes, so much the better.

Obviously, one thing I forgot to mention was Honey Fungus, if this killed the tree, and other trees or shrubs are nearby, then in this case unfortunately the whole stump and roots will have to be removed to prevent the infection of other plants, but people need not have any fear with other fungi that may be present - they will be feeding on the remains of the tree and will not be a threat to other plants.
In fact why not plant Ivy to grow up the stump ?
By the way, Stag Beetles seem to prefer deciduous trees to conifer trees, but any stump is worth retaining for wildlife.

Hello Mac,

A forestry environment is a different ball game, so yes access is important for machinery etc. but also I believe you have to take away as much as possible, not just for commercial reasons but also to keep Fomes (Heterobasidion annosum) under control.
But I was talking about dead standing timber in a domestic situation and leaving tall stumps in the forest wouldn't be on, but it's nice to know that where practical, you can still leave the odd dead standing tree for wildlife.

A private forest is different though to Forestry Commission land where the public now have open access and where a standing dead tree may be a liability - you could get away with this in a private environment.
Which do you work in ?

Neil.