Anger As Iconic Willow Tree At Strand On the Green Falls Over

Locals claim that delay in planned Council pruning may have led to its demise

Picture: Yvonne Baker

The iconic willow tree which graced the walk along the river at Strand on the Green is no more and some locals have blamed Hounslow Council for its demise. They say it had been scheduled for pruning and the work wasn't done on time to save it.

Residents were upset to discover that the tree had toppled over on Saturday night (3 September). It used to overhang the river and had fallen in towards the foreshore.

One local told Chiswickw4.com that Hounslow Council had been scheduled to carry out pollarding work but had not done so.

"It seems as if the weight of the tree toppled it over," he commented.

A local resident was in contact with the Council on March 14th in relation to works being carried out and was told that Arboricultural staff would be in touch. However, he did not hear back, he said. Another resident was told that following an inspection, the willow tree was scheduled to be pruned as part of the current triennial review cycle.

Residents became concerned as the spring turned into summer that the tree being in full leaf would make the process more difficult. However, no work was carried out and the tree has now toppled over

There was also a seasonally very high tide on Saturday and that may have contributed to the fate of the tree.

Picture: Richard Griffith

We asked Hounslow Council about the matter and they sent the following statement:

Councillor Amrit Mann, Deputy Leader of Hounslow Council, said: “Following reports of a fallen tree on the river bank at Strand on the Green, Chiswick, Hounslow Highways, who manage the borough’s street services on behalf of Hounslow Council, have installed barriers to make the area around the tree safe.

“Hounslow Highways is continuing to work with the Port of London Authority, which is responsible for the River Thames and its banks, to arrange safe removal of the tree.

“As well as this, the area where the tree stood will also be assessed to see if an replacement tree can be accommodated there. If this is not possible, a tree will be planted in a suitable position elsewhere to maintain the numbers of trees in the borough.”

We have asked the Council to comment on the matter of the pollarding.

September 9, 2016