I'M CURRENTLY doing some research for Friends of the Lake District looking at the effects of climate change on Cumbria’s landscape.

With recent letters to the Gazette concerning trees and woodland management, here are a few wider thoughts in light of the extra stresses put on our trees by climate change:

- We need more trees, a lot more! (Both natural regeneration and newly planted.)

- Getting the right trees in the right places can absorb carbon dioxide, improve air quality, protect soils against erosion and slow water run-off, improve/expand wildlife habitats, and provide shade/shelter for animals and humans.

- Ideally, planting would link up existing woodlands, copses and hedgerows as bigger areas allow plants and animals to move about, and small isolated patches of trees can be more vulnerable to wind blow/storm damage.

- The biggest threat to our trees is from pests and diseases (existing and future ones). The more diversity there is through a good mix of species, the more resilience woodlands seem to have to help fight the impacts of pests and diseases. Ash dieback is a major worry in our amazing limestone, ash-dominated ancient woodlands. Let’s hope the trials to find resistant strains give us a solution.

- Weather extremes make trees more vulnerable to wind blow due to soil saturation/drought and high wind storms. More than ever when thinning or managing woodlands we need to think about potential wind blow damage.

- Coppicing and pollarding trees is good. Not only does the tree live on, but the vigorous re-growth means it absorbs more carbon dioxide. We also produce a sustainable product (what did we use before plastics came along?), and create incomes for our fabulous local coppice workers.

- Trees are good for our health. Not only do they help take pollutants out of the air, but evidence shows when you’re recovering from illness being near/seeing trees and woods speeds up the healing process.

- Trees are also things of beauty, improve our landscape, give us a sense of place and continuity and provide important indicators for understanding the effects of climate change.

Trees and the future of our climate are mutually interdependent. If any readers have any specific Cumbrian evidence of the impacts of climate change, please feel free to send me an email at research@fld.org.uk

Many thanks.

Jack Ellerby

Kendal