Felling to begin near Dalbeattie to removed diseased trees

Forestry and Land Scotland is removing diseased larch trees from Dalbeattie Forest.

The felling is set to begin as some trees in the area have been found to have Phytophthora ramorum.

It affects a number of different shrubs and tree species but it usually kills larch trees.

There is no known cure or treatment for the disease and the course of treatment is to chop down the affected trees.

Speaking to ITV Border, Katharina Koehler from Forestry and Land Scotland, said: “We recently harvested the large trees that had died of Phytophthora, which is a fungal disease that's transmitted by spores in the air and the spores kill the trees.

"That means they become a safety hazard. Their trees are more prone to dropping their branches or falling over. And we obviously don't want this to hit anyone on the head while enjoying the forest.

“So we're looking at approximately 50 hectare, which is approximately 150 football fields across the whole forest.

"To do this safely, we're asking the public to please support us in this work and follow all signage and banks and instructions and we hope to have it done by early next year. There'll be a few people working.

"Obviously, the machinery, the be harvesting machinery will have people on site that help close to paths. So we have put diversions out and we have put diversions on our website, information on our website so people can be informed."

Work is expected to progress through the forest and it is expected to be finished by May 2025.

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