The Chief Plant Health Officer has confirmed that Sweet chestnut blight has been found in East London.
Action is being taken to identify and control the disease in line with the Government’s plant disease contingency plans. The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) and Forestry Commission are carrying out extensive surveillance of sweet chestnut trees in the area, working closely with local stakeholders. Further action will be taken on the basis of surveillance information and the best available scientific evidence.
Anyone who has sweet chestnut trees in their garden or on their land, or for us, sometimes working with the trees, should check them for signs of the disease. Any suspected symptoms must be reported, preferably using the Forestry Commission’s Tree Alert disease reporting tool:
A symptoms factsheet is available from the Forestry Commission, include pictures of the symptoms to look for:
Chestnut blight does not pose any risk to people, pets or livestock, and is only known to seriously affect sweet chestnut (Castanea) species. It does not affect horse chestnut (Aesculus) species.
Good biosecurity is vital to reducing disease spread – anyone visiting or working in woodland should take care not to remove twigs, leaves and branches to avoid spreading the pest further. We will begin cleaning footwear, tools and machinery when we have been working with Sweet Chestnut trees before we move locations.
Want some advice about your trees? Phone Andrew on 07771 883061 or 01256 817369 or email him: Andrew@primarytreesurgeons.co.uk