Elms

Growing up in the 1960's and 1970's I was vaguely aware of Dutch Elm Disease until I met two lovely people - Gladys and Oliver Colbert, now sadly no longer with us but who took me under their wing like a surrogate son - who were keen horticulturists and pointed out the ranks of dead elms littering the countryside of Surrey.

I noticed that elm saplings lived for a few years but the moment they reached a substantial size the disease took hold and killed the trees.

In art classes at school in the mid-1970's I used to look at landscape drawings and paintings with these fabulous trees.

As time passed our interests change - I no longer wanted to be an astronaut (actually I never wanted to be an astronaut I wanted to be in the RAF as a Fighter Controller so running a guesthouse was the next best thing) - and I washed up in Brighton in 2001.

The following year I suddenly realised that most of the trees as you come into Brighton, all around Preston Park, the Level, Royal Pavilion Gardens, Old Steine and Victoria Gardens are all mature elms.

It seems the beetle that carries the fungus which is Dutch Elm Disease is unable to cross the South Downs. This doesn't mean they are safe - signs appear frequently and drastic lopping or even removal is required. But there are hundreds of them and very grand they are too.

I hope one day, with GM technology or microbiological technology at our disposal as never before, we can conquer this disease and replant them in our countryside so that future generations can enjoy it in all its diversity.