Matthew Roberts
Frequently Asked Questions
Your questions answered!
The Saving Devon's Treescapes project has many elements, from working with schools to nurturing seeds in a tree nursery. With such a wide-ranging project, there are bound to be questions! Below are some answers to questions you may have about ash dieback, tree planting and how you can get involved.
Can I help plant trees?
Of course! We are always looking for volunteers to help plant trees. We often have landowners that have the land but can’t do it themselves so volunteers are always welcome. If you’d like to register to volunteer then please contact Michael at mrogers@devonwildlifetrust.org. Please include where you live in your message.
Can I donate trees or seeds to your nursery?
Due to biosecurity measures, we are unable to accept any donations of trees or seeds. However, we do sometimes carry out tree planting on school grounds with the Exeter schools we’ve worked with regularly over the last decade. Please email us via contactus@devonwildlifetrust.org, and if there is potential for using your saplings in a school, one of our Education Team will get in touch.
Do you use plastic tree guards?
We are currently using plastic guards while we work with others to find better alternatives. We are trailing a few different tree guards as well as looking at alternatives like using fencing to protect the trees from animals.
What is ash dieback?
Ash dieback is a fungus which originated in Asia and was introduced to Europe around 30 years ago. The fungus grows inside an Ash tree, eventually blocking its water transport systems, causing it to die. It has caused a big problem because, unlike the Chinese and Manchurian species, our native ash species did not evolve with the fungus and have no natural defence against it. Ash dieback is estimated to kill 90% of Devon's 1.9 million ash trees in the coming years. You can find out more here.
Can we plant ash trees?
At the moment you should not plant any ash trees.
What shall I do with the ash tree in my garden?
A dead ash tree can still provide a lot of things for our ecosystem, so if the tree poses no threat to life (e.g. it’s not close to a house, or along the side of a road) then we recommend leaving the tree where it is. For more information please visit the Devon Ash Dieback Resilience Forum webpages: https://www.devonashdieback.org.uk/
Do you work across all of Devon?
While we do work across all of Devon, 50% of the projects resource will go towards 5 focus landscapes. These are South Devon, Torbay, Exeter and Cranbrook, Coly Valleys and Neroche.