UK tree bank to start after lottery grant

The money will be used by scientists at Kew’s world-renowned Sussex base to begin the country’s first national collection of tree seeds.

The UK National Tree Seed Project will be the receptacle for seeds from our best loved and most vulnerable trees and shrubs, including ash, silver birch and yew, which will be protected in the sub-zero vaults of the seed bank at Wakehurst Place.

Head of the Millennium Seed Bank, Dr Paul Smith, said: “In the last 10 years we have seen an increasing threat to our trees from many newly arrived, often very aggressive pests and diseases. In 2013 almost all of our favourite tree species, from oak to beech and ash, are affected.

“Establishing the UK’s first comprehensive national tree seed bank is absolutely crucial. The UK’s tree cover is already amongst the lowest in Europe. Avoiding further degradation of our woodlands, and the wider environmental, economic and social impacts of this, ultimately hinges on conserving the valuable genetic diversity of our trees and shrubs.”

More than 10 per cent of the world’s wild plant species are already secured at the Millennium Seed Bank with 25 per cent targeted for 2020.

The new project will ensure UK tree seeds that are already among the seed bank collections grow to become comprehensive, eventually representing the full genetic diversity of the tree population. The seeds will be available to research organisations working on solutions to the threats facing our trees, including pests and diseases such as ash dieback and the pine tree lappet moth. Ultimately, they will be used to restore trees to the countryside and increase tree cover.