Day of action to help protect rare whitebeam trees

Some of the rarest trees in Europe are being protected as part of a partnership project. The Wye Valley is a centre of diversity for whitebeam evolution, with internationally important populations of these rare trees.

Six species which occur in the Wye Valley occur nowhere else in the world.

All of them, put together, are rarer than the giant panda.

Over the summer, staff from the Forestry Commission and The Tree Council, working with the Dean Green Team volunteer group, surveyed rare whitebeam trees high up on the cliffs of the Wye Valley.

This partnership culminated in a day of action to protect the future of these rare trees.

Some of the sites were so inaccessible that tree climbers had to assist, as non-native trees and scrub were felled to give more light to the whitebeams, allowing them to flower and fruit.

Network Rail staff also joined the group to learn about rare whitebeams and improve their management of these trees in the Bristol Gorge.

Project advisor Dr Tim Rich, a national expert on whitebeam trees said: “We have cleared tall trees from around the whitebeams that I was concerned were shading them out. Their future is much more secure now.”

Kate Wollen from the Forestry Commission, who organised the work, said: “Letting in more light to the whitebeams was heavy work but very worthwhile.

“We are so lucky to have such a great network of partners and volunteers who are willing to help and give these great rarities a chance to flower, seed, reproduce and produce our trees of the future.”

The Wye Valley is home to 20 species of whitebeam and is one of the richest sites in the world where new species have evolved from other species. Six species occur in the Wye Valley and nowhere else in the world:

Doward whitebeam (Sorbus eminentiformis) is a rare tree in open woodlands on the Doward and Symonds Yat area; the total population is thought to be less than 54 mature individuals in four subpopulations. It has “endangered” threat status from the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Evan’s whitebeam (Sorbus evansii) is a recently described species named after the Monmouthshire botanist Trevor Evans who first found it. About 70 trees are known around the Doward and Symonds Yat and its IUCN status is “critically endangered” as there are fewer than 50 known mature individuals and some are affected by a fungus disease.

Green’s whitebeam (Sorbus greenii) has probably only evolved recently. It is named after Dave Green who first recognised it as distinct. Fifty-nine trees are known on the Doward, of which around 30 are mature and its IUCN status is “critically endangered”.

Herefordshire whitebeam (Sorbus herefordensis) is an unusual woodland tree on the Doward, with over 100 trees on a nature reserve. Its IUCN status is “endangered”.

Ship Rock whitebeam (Sorbus parviloba) is a small tree, currently only known as a single individual near Symonds Yat. Its IUCN status is “critically endangered”.

Symonds Yat whitebeam (Sorbus saxicola) is restricted to Symonds Yat and the Great Doward in the Wye Valley, where about 40 individuals are known in six locations. Its IUCN threat status is “critically endangered”.