"That was way back in 1968," Braswell recalls today. "One of the first things I learned was that mowing often leads to landscaping. And landscaping creates even more opportunity."What''s the greatest market change in last three decades?Braswell found even more business in tree care. His local company soon became Southern Tree & Landscape. It began, he recalls, with "nine employees in a small office trailer," and later grew to several hundred in multiple locations."New customers would often contact us to maintain their yards," Braswell explains, but "then they''d decide to do some landscaping and tree-planting. We became experts at both.""The biggest market change," Braswell emphasizes, "is that even people who love to do yard work decide to have someone else to do their maintenance. This opens all sorts of new markets."

Environmentalists have been quick to point fingers at chip mills for devastating forestry practices. But the industry insists it''s "out of the loop" concerning timber cuts, since operators purchase their supply from private landholders. Industry officials are so infuriated, many refused to comment. The line connecting chip mills to clearcuts and destructive forestry isn''t a straight one, but it is visible. Dean Carson of the South Carolina Forestry Commission argues that chips can be transported more efficiently, using less energy, than large pieces of timber, and mills can utilize the whole tree. But processing the whole tree is exactly what has brought the mills under fire: because lumber is chipped into one-inch pieces, any size scrap of timber will do. With new markets opening chopsawreview up for treetops, undersized trees, and forked or crooked specimens, landowners have added incentive to clearcut a site for quick profits, instead of harvesting selected trees to be cut into boards. And timber previously left behind to continue maturing, or that provided wildlife habitat or eroded to replenish soils, now finds itself in the steely mouths of the chippers. A 1998 U.S. Forest Service report says clearcutting accounts for 13 percent of logged land in the South. And because the chips are needed for everything from rayon and plastics to particleboard and paper, chip markets continue growing. Timber giant Willamette Industries says chip mills allow landowners to merchandise otherwise unusable trees, discouraging forestry practices like "high-grading" (cutting only the healthiest trees). "Clearcutting is often the best tool to assure a rich, diverse forest," claims Willamette''s web site. "Many songbirds and other types of wildlife require open areas for nesting and food gathering."

Features of Micromark''s model (MM9846) include an adjustable temperature control, water spray and non-stick soleplate. It has both steam and dry ironing facilities and retails for 12 [pounds sterling].Says Rosalind Johnson, Micromark Appliance''s product manager: "The new steam travel iron has been designed to fill a gap in our current product range. It will provide the foundations for our new travel accessory collection, offering great features at affordable prices."Kenwood''s version, the ST60, also boasts steam and dry functions and incorporates a removable water tank, temperature control and non-stick soleplate. This model retails for 15 [pounds sterling].

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