Ash Die Back: Chalara fraxinea fungus and Highways Ash trees in Reading #rdg

I got the following briefing through on Ash dieback from the Council and where the trees are – on council Highways land only. For some Green Party comment see here.

There are 173 Ash trees on highway land in Reading as shown in the following table:

Ward	Number of Ash trees
Abbey	4
Battle	4
Caversham	1
Church	35
Katesgrove	1
Kentwood	11
Mapledurham	3
Minster	4
Norcot	22
Park	0
Peppard	29
Southcote	22
Thames	8
Tilehurst	29
Whitley	0
Total	173

Sudden Ash dieback ( Fraxinus species) is caused by the Chalara fungus which has been featured heavily in the media over recent days and as of the 5^th November has been found in 82 sites in Britain.

A visual survey of all 173 highway Ash trees is being carried out by Phil Cowpland, the RBC Tree Officer but the results are unlikely to be conclusive at this time of year during natural leaf fall. Conclusive evidence of the active disease may not be available until the leaf buds break next spring, but we have not received any conclusive reports over the summer months of sudden leaf death.

We will monitor all the trees over the winter and at leaf bud break next spring and inform you of any remedial action that is necessary. The disease cannot be cured once contracted by the tree, but death is not inevitable as some trees will have a natural resistance to the fungus, and more mature trees will have more chance of surviving an infection. We have no plans to instigate full scale felling of trees to prevent infection or to prescribe wholesale felling of trees which are suspected of being infected unless encouraged to do so by the Forestry Commission.

If you receive any queries or reports of affected trees from residents please refer them to myself, Phil Cowpland or Richard Stimpson.

Further information can be found on the Forestry Commission website:

www.forestry.gov.uk

and suspected outbreaks can be reported on the following e mail addresses:

plant.health@forestry.gsi.gov.uk, planthealthinfo@fera.gsi.gov.uk