A study was initiated in 2002 to examine the fungal pathology of birch dieback in Scotland. The main objectives of this project are to investigate the fungi infecting birch shoots in Scotland, identify the primary pathogens with the ability to infect healthy trees, determine the impact of these fungi on the national woodland resource, and […]
Rhododendron ponticum is an evergreen shrub which forms dense thickets up to 5 metres in height. The large purple blooms appear in spring and are an attractive sight which has become commonplace especially on forested slopes in the west of the British Isles. Foresters are familiar with it as a most intractable weed, indeed control […]
Oak trees in Britain have long suffered from dieback and decline disorders, but a disease called acute oak decline has been causing particular concern since the first few years of the 21st century. A typical symptom of the disease is dark, sticky fluid bleeding from small cracks in the bark on the trunk of the […]
This Occasional Paper describes the damage caused by the green spruce aphid, Elatobium abietinum, to Sitka spruce growing in Britain. Following an outbreak of this aphid in South Wales in 1980, it was possible to compare the impact and recovery of shoot growth in experimental plots at Rhondda Forest of a IUFRO provenance collection of […]
When conifers have been grown for Christmas trees in lowland arable farmland areas under an intensive short-rotation system, it has sometimes been found difficult to produce good quality foliage without embarking on some kind of insect control. Thirty-one species of aphids, moths, sawflies, beetles and mites are of concern to growers of Christmas trees in […]
Part I provides some useful guidelines by which managers and owners can investigate health problems in their trees through straightforward field observations. Part II is a key to the major problems of plantation trees. Part III describes the main features of some of the more common and most important diseases and disorders of forest trees […]
This Information Note describes the main resistance trait in young pine and spruce that affects feeding. Examples of weevil damage are illustrated as a guide to the recognition of resistant and susceptible trees in the field.
This document offers an introduction to ash dieback (Hymenoscyphus fraxineus) in England. It is intended for anyone who owns or manages ash trees, including private tree and woodland owners, local authorities and highway and railway authorities.It summarises current advice and signposts to more detailed guidance produced by Defra, the Forestry Commission and others. […]
Honey fungus is one of the commonest root diseases of trees and shrubs in the world. It can kill an enormous range of plants and also causes decay in standing trees. It is rarely a major problem in woodland although it sometimes kills large groups of conifers in young plantations. The disease is more serious […]
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