Identify, report and manage tree pests and diseases
Identify pests and diseases
Whether you're a forestry professional or forest visitor, find information to help you identify pests and diseases at Forest Research.
Report it
Report signs of dangerous tree pests and diseases using Forest Research's Tree Alert.
Give as much information as you can about what you have seen, where you have seen it, and the species affected.
Professionals' duty to report concerns
Forestry professionals have a statutory duty to report certain pests and diseases under the Plant Health (Forestry) Order 2005.
If you are in any doubt as to whether you should report your concerns, please contact us at treehealth@naturalresourceswales.gov.uk.
Early reporting of pests and diseases: Observatree
To help stop the establishment and spread of pests and diseases across the UK, a tree health early warning system called Observatree has been set up.
It encourages tree health professionals and people actively involved with trees to look out for, and report, any tree pest or disease sightings at the earliest opportunity.
It's a citizen science project led by Forestry Research in collaboration with others, including Natural Resources Wales. Its goals are to:
- Promote increased surveillance of tree pests and diseases
- Encourage all reporting of tree health concerns via Tree Alert (TreeCheck in Northern Ireland)
- Provide a UK-wide network of over 200 trained specialist volunteers
- Share information and resources on key tree pests and diseases
- Research similar European tree health systems to share best practice
Volunteers
The project has established a core network of over 200 trained Observatree volunteers who support tree health officers and scientists by undertaking a range of survey work, and help with processing and verifying tree health reports.
Find out more
Find out more about Observatree and sign up for updates.
Everyone can help
Trained inspectors from Natural Resources Wales, the Forestry Commission and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) undertake routine and rapid response surveys to check woods, ports, nurseries and other locations throughout Wales for signs of pests and diseases.
However, anyone and everyone can help us to keep track of threats – and to respond to them promptly – by knowing the symptoms of diseases and informing us of any concerns.