Castle weeders’ new heights

Weeding’s a growing concern at Dudley Castle – especially when the persistent plants are embedded in 11th century walls 30 metres high!

In a bid to get to the root of the problem staff contracted two abseilers from Staffordshire-based company, Total Access, who spent a week scaling the castle walls solving the creeping crisis.

CEO Peter Suddock, said: “We weeded the keep about a year ago and noticed the rest of the castle needed to be done.

“It’s an unusual job, but health and safety is paramount, as the roots could begin to eventually break up bits of the castle stone which would drop to the floor, so it was important we got it sorted.”

Total Access Raised Access Technician, Matt Sutton, pictured, said: “I’ve never worked on a castle before, and this job is definitely one of the most interesting and picturesque I’ve ever tackled.”