Steyning Downland Scheme: Tree Conundrums

Infected trees quickly become vulnerable to sudden collapse and that's the immediate concern along the informal paths and Rights of Way on the Steyning Downland Scheme. Over last weekend, a large Ash fell near our Newham Lane entrance, damaging the SDS information board there.

We're working with local foresters to remove infected Ash as safely and as quickly as we can. This will mean some fairly big changes to the local landscape, particularly in the Newham Lane area, where almost every tree seems to be affected. From now to the end of March, we're also planning some significant clearance along the Upper Horseshoe path, which will involve temporary diversions of the Bridleway.

A large proportion of the trees on the Horseshoe are Ash and so at the moment it's looking like big changes to the landscape may lie ahead. It's worth remembering though that nothing stays still in nature. The Horseshoe Woods we know now, are in fact only around 50 years old. As the photo from 1950 shows, there was still open grassland and scrub on the Horseshoe, well within living memory (with thanks to Mark Emery for sending this on):
Infected trees quickly become vulnerable to sudden collapse and that's the immediate concern along the informal paths and Rights of Way on the Steyning Downland Scheme. Over last weekend, a large Ash fell near our Newham Lane entrance, damaging the SDS information board there.

We're working with local foresters to remove infected Ash as safely and as quickly as we can. This will mean some fairly big changes to the local landscape, particularly in the Newham Lane area, where almost every tree seems to be affected. From now to the end of March, we're also planning some significant clearance along the Upper Horseshoe path, which will involve temporary diversions of the Bridleway.

A large proportion of the trees on the Horseshoe are Ash and so at the moment it's looking like big changes to the landscape may lie ahead. It's worth remembering though that nothing stays still in nature. The Horseshoe Woods we know now, are in fact only around 50 years old. As the photo from 1950 shows, there was still open grassland and scrub on the Horseshoe, well within living memory (with thanks to Mark Emery for sending this on):

Ash dieback, also known as Chalara dieback of ash, is a serious disease that is killing ash across Europe. Ash is a very important tree in the UK both ecologically and culturally so this disease is causing great concern about the damage it will do. Ref: https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/visiting-woods/tree-diseases-and-pests/key-threats/ash-dieback/