Yes I know this is possibly a bit OT, but DIY'ing one's own logs makes
it OK ... I think.

Anyway I noticed late last summer that a beech tree nearby had
suddenly gone brown - all the leaves had died. So I mentally marked
it for a request to the local farmer for permission to fell it this
year for logs. The 'felling' part has proved to be unnecessary as
nature has brought it down for me - the farmer is now complaining of
course as it damaged his fencing.

What puzzles me is that the tree appears to have died from the roots
up in that there is really very little root ball and the roots have
broken off pretty close to the bole. The tree is mature (30 inch
diameter) but there's no rot. It could have been caused by the dry
summer but there is a burn close by.

Anybody got an explanation as I would have expected the dead tree to
have stood for some time before falling and there to be significant
ground damage when it did come down.

Rob