It’s not every day that you get asked to fell trees in a prison, or Her Majesty’s Immigration Removal Centre – to be precise. The January storms had damaged the roots of two large cypresses within the grounds of HMIRC The Verne, on Portland, and caused the trees to become unstable. We have just spent the past two days removing these multiple-stemmed conifers. Fortunately, the establishment were happy to use the chippings and sawdust for mulch, so six tipper loads were duty emptied into one of their large composting bays. I would ordinarily have provided a picture for the blog, but cameras or phones simply aren’t welcome in such places!