Ashes To Ashes: The Devastation Of Dieback

This much-loved native species faces an uncertain future due to a relentless pathogen, which is damaging landscapes and wrecking our woodlands

- Simon Lloyd

Ash is one of those tree species that is much beloved by the nation – a national treasure. It has been nurtured for centuries by woodland owners and managers as a reliable timber crop. It is used extensively by furniture makers and craftsmen, praised by nature lovers for the extraordinary range of biodiversity it can sustain, and enjoyed by the public for its sheer aesthetic beauty and the grace it brings to any wooded landscape. However, the first indication that all was not well in our ash woodlands came in 2012 – just seven years ago. Ash dieback – a fungal pathogen initially known as ‘chalara’ but now recognized as Hymenoscyphus fraxineus – was reported on young trees imported into nursery stock from mainland Europe. That stock was quickly destroyed. But then came further discoveries and, although first reported in 2012, there is now strong evidence that ash dieback was present in the UK before that date, undetected.

Tracing the disease further back, it first emerged in Poland in the early 1990s and has spread through many European countries, killing ash trees in their millions – 90% of those in Denmark have died.

It is spread both on imported stock (now banned) and is carried by the wind. Since 2012, it has spread east to west across the UK, and can now be seen in almost every county of England and Wales and across Eastern Scotland. Young ash is particularly susceptible but in the past few years, it has become obvious that older, mature ash is also falling victim.