The June Horse Chestnut Photo

 A month on from my last photo of the Horse Chestnut tree and the flowers have become conkers, very small still of course.

Sadly there are early signs of the disease which now affects the leaves each year - brown splodges starting to appear. In another month they will be even more widespread. The odd thing about this disease which is relatively new here (last 30 years maybe) is that it doesn't have any effect on the actual tree.....thankfully. Having lost Elm trees and Ash trees to disease we don't want to lose Horse Chestnut trees as well.

Guignardia Leaf Blotch (Guignardia aesculi): A fungus-driven disease.

• Symptoms: Irregular dull brown or reddish blotches, often surrounded by a conspicuous yellow band, typically concentrated at the leaf tips and edges.
• Impact: Mostly an aesthetic issue, though severe attacks cause the leaves to shrivel entirely. Raking up and destroying fallen leaves in autumn helps limit the spread for the following spring

The fungus was introduced accidentally into the UK from North America in the last century and has gradually spread around the country. 

 

Here's a reminder of how the tree looked a month ago

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