Ash trees

[biffvernon]

Two excellent short videos from FERA. Well worth watching and getting acquainted with.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1GpufLk ... =autoshare

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sI7hgFZ ... =autoshare

[biffvernon]

Why can't we just behave like Australians for once and do biosecurity properly? Scots Pine next.

http://m.guardian.co.uk/environment/201 ... pe=article

[woodburner]

Politicians in the UK don't really give a stuff about bio-security. Hilary Benn was the minister responsible in 2008. He was told about ash die-back on the continent and did nothing, as have all his successors.

There was a report on radio 4 of a grower who was complaining that it took months between their notifying Defra of trees they had which were diseased, and receiving a destruction notice. FFS, does nobody do anything unless they have ensured they get the maximum financial benefit for themselves?

[Little John]

Politicians in the UK don't really give a stuff about bio-security. Hilary Benn was the minister responsible in 2008. He was told about ash die-back on the continent and did nothing, as have all his successors.

There was a report on radio 4 of a grower who was complaining that it took months between their notifying Defra of trees they had which were diseased, and receiving a destruction notice. FFS, does nobody do anything unless they have ensured they get the maximum financial benefit for themselves?

Not when there is no such thing as society.

We reap what we sow.

[biffvernon]

The FC have produced this handy leaflet:
http://www.forestry.gov.uk/pdf/pest-ale ... k-2012.pdf

and my local nursery, Crowders, is suing the government: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... ds-newsxml

It seems that that Defra have been acting true the omnishambles zeitgeist.

[biffvernon]

There's a map of outbreaks here: http://www.forestry.gov.uk/images/uk_ou ... _map2a.jpg

[Little John]

There's a map of outbreaks here: http://www.forestry.gov.uk/images/uk_ou ... _map2a.jpg

It's too late to try and stop it now, assuming that was ever a viable strategy in the first place.

The best thing now would be to simply let it blow through and cut down diseased ash trees as they become dangerous. In the meantime, those few ash trees that show significant inherent resistance should be used as the nursery stock to replenish the main population over time.

What concerns me is that the government, in a desperate attempt to look like they are "doing something" after the fact, will end up hysterically chopping down perfectly healthy ash trees in a given radius around diseased ones and, in doing so, may end up cutting down trees that would have provided the resistant strains for future generations.

[UndercoverElephant]

There is no point in cutting down trees to try to stop this. This is not like dutch elm disease, which was carried by beetles that can't fly very far. These are fungal spores we are talking about, and they can travel a long way on the wind.

The only thing slowing it down is the prevailing wind direction. It we normally had easterly winds then it would have spread west much faster.

[adam2]

The consensus seems to be that it is now too late to stop the spread of ash die back.
It appears that the spores are wind borne and therefore that closing woodland to the public, and asking walkers to wash boots, dogs and children, wont help.

The felling of all ash trees within a certain radius of an infected tree seems a bad idea as posted above, as it would destroy the minority of resistant trees.

I think that regretably we will have to accept that most ash trees will die.

Efforts should therefore be concentrated on reducing the impact, especialy by looking for surviving trees in badly affected areas, and propagating from these.
AFAIK the disease is only dangerous to ash trees, therfore dead or dying trees may be left in situ as wildlife havens, or harvested for fire wood.

Affected forests should be re-planted with a mixture of resistant ash, and other species, it would not be advisable to plant too much of any one tree species in one place lest they succumb to some other disease.

[biffvernon]

Here's a somewhat more positive angle from the Botanical Society:

http://www.bsbi.org.uk/ash_dieback.html

[kenneal - lagger]

At least now, if there is a large scale die back, we won't have huge, wasteful bonfires polluting the environment and there will be more firewood available.

[adam2]

At least now, if there is a large scale die back, we won't have huge, wasteful bonfires polluting the environment and there will be more firewood available.

Yes, friends in Wales have just cut down the 4 ash trees on their land, partly as a precaution but they were considering cutting them anyway for building timber, with offcuts and trimmings for fuel.
This will also give access to fell a large oak which is past its best and needs felling soon if the wood is to be valuable.

[Little John]

Here's a somewhat more positive angle from the Botanical Society:

http://www.bsbi.org.uk/ash_dieback.html

Yes

On balance, I think we can safely say that, when it comes to Ash Die-back disese, its bark is worse than its blight.








I'll get me coat........

[kenneal - lagger]

I'll get me coat........

Yes please!!!

[UndercoverElephant]

I've been out this morning looking for photos of fungi. I found my first case of Chalara (ash dieback). In Brighton itself, unfortunately.