An old pollard that had three stems before it had but two (though it now has only one!), we can see how recent the second failure event was. We had some strong winds last week, and I suspect this occurred then. Massive failure, though given it’s within Epping Forest it’ll be left on the deck and be host to many species of fungi and insect in the future.
Looking at the failure zone, an area of bark inclusion was evident. No doubt, this impacted upon the structural integrity of the beech, and facilitated with its failure a week or two ago.
A nice surprise on the opposite side of the tree, as well. And no, it wasn’t a winning lottery ticket.
Arboriculture 