Scottish Forestry urges woodland owners to check larch trees for disease
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WOODLAND owners across Scotland are being urged to check larch trees for disease and report any symptomatic findings.
The message from Scottish Forestry comes as the agency restarts its aerial and ground surveys for Phytophthora ramorum, a tree disease which kills larch.
Due to physical distancing measures, the helicopter surveys will be run at a reduced capacity. Drones and satellite imagery will be used to gather extra information on the extent of the disease.
Scottish Forestry staff have been out starting ground-based tree health inspections since the start of June.
Environment Minister Mairi Gougeon said: "Through the Scottish Government’s route map, outdoor work such as forest survey and site visits are able to restart in a careful and considered way.
"Although Covid-19 prevented Scottish Forestry staff from site inspections during the lockdown, desk work and planning still continued. It’s good news that important work such as outdoor tree health inspections and surveys are now under way again."
Follow-up site surveys for suspected sites will take place in summer with Statutory Plant Health Notices being issued if the disease is confirmed.
To slow down the rate of spread, any infected larch trees are felled, along with any additional larch trees in a 250-metre radius. The timber can still be used as long as a licence to handle it is obtained.
Phytophthora ramorum has been present in Scotland since 2002. The main area affected is in the south-west of Scotland. Outwith this area, around 3,600 hectares of larch are believed to be affected out of a total larch resource of 60,000 hectares.
The disease can be spread in mud or tree needles stuck to footwear, bikes, vehicles or even on dogs’ paws. Advice to the public is to "Keep it Clean" and always brush off any dirt before and after visiting a forest.
Any woodland owner who suspects their larch trees are infected should report their findings to tree.health@forestry.gov.scot.
A map of confirmed infections can be found here.
