Wych Elm
About a year ago, I discovered a grove of trees I could not identify in my local woodland. How odd. This prompted some urgent research. I discovered they are Wych elm ( Ulmus glabra ) trees. What a discovery! No wonder I didn't recognise them. Dutch elm disease wiped out the majority of England's elm trees in the 1970s. In fact, this disease has ravaged a whole range of elm trees across the world. I remember, as a young child, when the truly magnificent American elm ( Ulmus americana ) specimen in my front garden in the USA succumbed, such a heartbreaking loss. Since my recent discovery, I've kept a close eye on this grove of local wonder. They must possess some form of resistance to either Ophiostoma novo-ulmi , the fungus causing Dutch elm disease, or to infestation by elm bark beetles, vectors of the disease. Back in May, I decided to ramp up my safeguarding of this 'sacred grove' one step further by collecting some of the delicate, almost confetti like, seeds ...