May 2018 This month we have been working on an area in the research plots which is to house a new trial of ash. The purpose of this trial is to examine several different species of ash over a number of years to see how they respond to the environment and whether they are susceptible to Hymenoscyphus fraxineus (Ash die back). We know that we have Hymenoscyphus on site so the trees will experience a high exposure to it. If there are any that show resistance they may be used in the future to replace our native ash. The plot has to be deer and rabbit proof so it was great practice for Phil and I to use our fencing skills to help enclose the area. We had a visit this month from Forest Research to

investigate some of our sickly trees. A digger was used

to push several of them over in order to examine the

roots as some diseases are soil or water-bourne. The tree being pulled out in the image on the right did not show any damage to the roots, but samples were taken away to test under laboratory conditions. The image on the far right shows some white pine blister rust. This causes branches to swell up around the infection. As the swellings progress they can eventually girdle and kill the branch or stem. Chamaenerion angustifolium (willow herb) and Ribes such as blackcurrant are known to be alternate hosts for the disease. Other diseases found on the visit were Diplodia, which is a fungal disease that causes blight and cankers. Rhizosphaera - another fungal disease, was suspected on one tree. This disease affects spruces growing outside of their native range and causes them to lose their needles.

Left – the ash waiting to be planted. Right – Phil and I helping to build the fence

I also spent some time this month helping Fiona in the nursery to follow up on the Mulanje cedar project (see more about this in my blog from last year https://bedgeburypinetum.org.uk/assets/PDFs/Forest-Apprentice/Forest-Apprentice-blog-April-May-.pdf)

Widdringtonia whytei, the national tree of Malawi, is critically endangered and may now even be extinct in the wild due to excessive logging. There is a conservation project underway to regrow and replant them. A number of the trees that they grew and planted out on the mountains were failing to thrive. To try to assist the Malawians to find the cause of the problem we trialled different growing containers to see which produced the best roots. As the trial came to an end we examined the roots of the seedlings in their different containers to see which were most healthy. It appeared that the air pots and long tubular packets had the most fibrous roots.

We have planted a lot of trees, shrubs and grasses this month! This included a new area at the back of the Visitor Centre. Among the many interesting plants that we handled, a couple particularly caught my eye. They were two Gingkos – a standard Gingko biloba ‘Troll’ and one with interesting tubular leaves Gingko biloba ‘Broom with tubes’.

The Glory Hole has been looking

fabulous in the late spring sunshine,

with many fantastically bright azaleas

and rhododendrons. I’ll leave you with

some bright and colourful photos…

Left – Phil building a cage around a newly planted specimen. Right –the

Gingko biloba ‘Troll’