City 'tree crisis' sees 200 being removed every year

TREES ‘DYING OR DAMAGED BY DISEASE’

- WILLIAM TELFORD

PLYMOUTH is facing a tree crisis with about 200 dying or having to be removed due to damage or disease every year. Plymouth Tree People (PTP), the charity dedicated to looking after the city’s trees, said many of the trees are about a century old and coming to the end of their lives.

It means, PTP says, that a similar number of trees need to be planted each year just to maintain the “canopy cover”. PTP has been busy planting more than 60 trees in the city in the past few weeks.

This week the charity was involved in the planting of four trees in Wilton Street, Millbridge, and another close by on the corner of Valletort Road and Paradise Road. These follow 16 trees planted in Beacon Park Road, and on March 22 a sycamore is to be planted in Guildhall Square, in the city centre, to replace one damaged in Storm Noa.

“There is a crisis facing urban trees in the city,” said Andrew Young, a trustee of PTP. “About 200 new trees are needed a year – that’s how many are lost or removed.

“Many were planted in the late 19th century or early 20th century and are coming to the end of their life. There was also a lot of house building after World War Two, and a lot planted then were shorter life trees and also coming to the end of their span. So we plant as many as possible.”