Sweet Chestnut Blight
Pest or disease?
Disease
Causal agent:
Cryphonectria parasitica (fungus)
Host species:
European sweet chestnut
Present in the UK?
Yes at a small number of sites in England
Tree Alert required?
Yes
Sweet chestnut blight is a destructive disease of Sweet chestnut trees and can be fatal to European sweet chestnuts. Rarely, oaks and other species can also be hosts, but Horse chestnut trees are not affected.
In North America severe outbreaks of chestnut blight have caused widespread losses of the highly susceptible American chestnut trees. The disease originates in Asia and was first found in England in 2011 associated with planting stock, and it is known to be infecting sweet chestnut trees at a small number of sites in southern England. Any sites found with chestnut blight are subject to containment, and in many cases eradication measures are also required.
The fungus enters the tree through bark cracks or wounds, in some cases including wounds caused by the Oriental chestnut gall wasp. Symptoms of sweet chestnut blight include stem and branch cankers, cracking and discolouration of the bark, orange to brown fruiting bodies, wilting and dying back of foliage, and epicormic growth beneath the cankers. Underneath the bark of infected trees, buff-coloured mycelial fans can be found.
For more information on Sweet chestnut blight please see the resources below.
