By Sue Crawford

Last updated at 12:20, Thursday, 01 November 2012

The landscape in Cumbria is under threat from a deadly fungal disease that targets ash trees.

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Experts fear a repeat of the devastation caused by Dutch elm disease as the condition affects a third of the UK’s trees.

Already a ban has been imposed on the import of ash trees as part of desperate measures to protect large areas of woodland.

Ted Wilson, a Penrith-based forestry expert, said the fungus causes Ash Dieback which has wiped out swathes of the trees throughout Europe.

He said: “Make no mistake, this infection has the potential to be the worst to hit any of our trees since Dutch Elm Disease all but wiped out elms in the UK.”

Although Cumbria is thought to be clear at the moment, the infection was recently discovered in trees near Glasgow, Leicester, South Yorkshire and County Durham.

Mr Wilson, director of Silviculture Research International, a forestry consultancy in Penrith, said: “In Cumbria, ash is our third most important broadleaf species after oak and birch, and is the most numerous ‘individual feature’ tree outside the main woodlands” he said.

“In terms of its landscape and heritage value it is right up there with Herdwick sheep and our ancient churches.”

Ash Dieback was first discovered in a consignment of infected saplings that was sent from the Netherlands to a nursery in Buckinghamshire eight months ago.

But the disease may also have simply blown in on east winds from the continent.

Young trees are particularly susceptible and are usually dead within one year of becoming infected.

Older trees can withstand initial infection but usually die after several seasons.

Mr Wilson underlined the threat to Cumbria’s ancient individual “specimen” ash trees in valleys such as St John’s-in-the-Vale and Borrowdale.

Furthermore, there are nearly 2,500 hectares of ash woodland and well over 500,000 individual specimens across the county.

“Some are superb pollarded trees – a practice dating back to the time when Vikings settled the area and introduced the Herdwick sheep,” said Mr Wilson. “Some trees are 700 years old. They are simply spectacular and vital features of the Lakeland landscape.

“The risk of our trees becoming infected is enormous and incredibly worrying.”

There is no cure for Ash Dieback and the impact has been devastating in northern Europe. Denmark has lost 90 per cent of its ash trees to the disease. To try to limit its spread, imports of infected saplings from mainland Europe will have to be banned and affected trees felled and burnt.

The Forestry Commission has more information. Go to the commission website www.forestry.gov.uk

First published at 12:18, Thursday, 01 November 2012
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk