Ash dieback in the United Kingdom. The fungus was first found in Britain during February 2012 at sites that had received saplings from nurseries in the previous five years. A ban on imports of ash from other European countries was imposed in October 2012 after infected trees were found in established woodland.

How did ash dieback get to the UK?

How did ash dieback get here? The spores of this fungus can travel in the wind so it is possible that it arrived in the UK naturally however it was also inadvertently imported on ash saplings. The UK was importing thousands of ash plants from infected parts of Europe until a ban came into place in 2012.

How did ash dieback start?

An increasing body of evidence suggests that ash dieback - the disease which has killed trees across Europe and is now in Britain - originated in Japan. Some scientists say the fungus now ravaging trees across Europe is the same as a native species from Japan.