A ban on Ash imports is due to go into place today (29 October) in a bid to stop the spread of Chalara fraxinea, a disease of Ash trees that has already seen the destruction of 50,000 specimens in the UK.
The announcement was made by DEFRA Secretary of State, Owen Paterson, on Saturday prior to meeting with the Forestry Commission to consider what further action may be needed to take to control of "Ash dieback disease".
People are asked to report potential sightings of infected trees, in the hope that the ecological impacts of this devastating disease can be minimised.
In a letter sent to the Secretary of State on Friday, René Olivieri, Chair of The Wildlife Trusts, said that it is clearly very disappointing that failure to ban the import and movement of Ash trees has resulted in the disease spreading into the natural environment – and one of Norfolk Wildlife Trust’s nature reserves - and has encouraged the Secretary of State to:
- Assess how far the disease has spread and halt it from spreading further around Britain;
- Set up an Emergency Summit, to co-ordinate action to halt the spread of the disease, to bring together appropriate scientists, commercial interests and representatives of landowning bodies including conservation organisations.
What are the symptoms of Ash dieback disease?
Visible symptoms include leaf loss and crown dieback in affected trees and it can lead to tree death.
Foliage - Leaves can suffer from wilting and black-brownish discoloration at the leaf base and midrib. Dieback of shoots and twigs is also very characteristic.
Branches and stems - Small lens-shaped lesions or necrotic spots appear on the bark of stems and branches and enlarge to form perennial cankers. These cause wilting and dieback of shoots and branches, particularly in the upper crown. Underneath the bark lesions, the wood has a brownish to grey discoloration which often extends longitudinally beyond the bark necrosis.
Whole tree - Trees with withered tops and shoots are very characteristic. Heavily affected trees have extensive shoot, twig and branch dieback and often have prolific epicormic shoots. Chalara fraxinea has also been isolated from the roots of symptomatic trees, as well as from leaves, shoots and branch/stem lesions.
More information can be found on the Forestry Commission website
Specific guidance is available in a pdf document on Ash Dieback Disease and a pictorial guide