Targeting tree disease in Kent and Sussex
Trees and woods are crucial; they give homes to wildlife, give us clean air, shade and water, and provide food and fuel. But they are under threat. 60 million trees have already been taken by Dutch elm disease and 126 million trees in British woods are at risk of ash dieback. There are 19 pests and diseases attacking our native trees, six of which have reached epidemic levels and at least 11 more diseases are nearing our borders.
Kent and Sussex are the most wooded counties in England, and are facing a huge impact from ash dieback. It’s vital that we act now to replace lost trees and increase species diversity to prevent tree diseases taking hold and to maintain a healthy woodland ecosystem. This is particularly important for our trees outside of woods.
Subsidised (part-funded) by the Woodland Trust, the pack is designed to address the impact of ash dieback on landscape trees rather than hedgerow trees or large blocks of woodland. These are trees that might form boundaries, individual field trees or small copses.
This pack is made up of trees suited to growing on large plots of land. It includes 45 cell-grown saplings, approximately 20-60cm in height. You’ll receive 15 of each tree species, the tree provenance of which we will try to match to your location.
This pack has been developed to help reduce the impact of ash dieback in Kent and Sussex. We would advise that you do not purchase this pack unless you live within the areas of Kent, East or West Sussex. If you live outside of these areas, our alternative Targeting Tree Disease pack is available.
Choose from our 4 different mixes depending on the soil type where you are planning to plant:
· Clay: Hornbeam, English oak, Wild cherry
· Sand: Common beech, Rowan, Small-leaved lime
· Wet: Alder, Sessile oak, Goat willow
· Chalk: Common beech, Field maple, Small-leaved lime
Please note that some species within these packs can grow to a height of up to 40m, so take this into consideration when planting to ensure they have sufficient space.
Tree protection options:
You can choose whether you want to purchase tree protection alongside your saplings or not. Please consider whether your saplings need protection, particularly from browsing mammals.
- No tree protection – your order will contain saplings, but no tree protection. We would suggest this option if your saplings are unlikely to be affected by browsing mammals of any size, or if you have plans for alternative tree protection e.g., browsing reduction, fencing.
- Easywraps and canes – your order will contain saplings as well as easywraps and canes. This option will help to provide protection from small mammals e.g. voles.
- Tubes and stakes - your order will contain saplings as well as tubes and stakes. This option will help to provide protection from small and large browsing mammals.
Estimated full-grown height:
Alder: 20m, beech: 10-40m, field maple: 20m, English/pedunculate oak: 20-40m, rowan: 8-15m, goat willow: 6-10 m, wild cherry: 18-25m, Sessile oak: 20-40m, Small leaved lime: 18m.
Purchase size and growth:
These trees are cell-grown saplings, ranging from approximately 15cm-60cm in height. Cell grown trees can be planted all year round in most situations as long as they are given the correct care. Please be aware that depending upon the time of year you receive your sapling (particularly early spring) it may not look very perky upon arrival, please do not worry once it has been planted it should pick up quickly.
UK and Ireland Sourced and Grown (UKISG):
Every sapling that we provide is UK and Ireland sourced and grown to minimise the risk of importing and spreading tree pests and diseases. Seeds are collected and stored in the UK and Ireland, and they are all coded and batched so that we can track each individual tree.
Visit the Woodland Trust website for more information about the trees in this pack.
Read our guides to learn how to identify and prevent tree diseases.
* Thanks to generous support from our partners, you will only pay 50% of the cost of these packs
The images in this product listing show the saplings bundled and wrapped. This plastic wrap is made from LDPE (low-density polyethylene) and is 100% recyclable, we encourage users to recycle them when you are ready to plant your trees.
