Sadness at potential loss of cherry tree in city
A group of arborists have expressed concern at plans to remove one of the few large public trees in central Hereford.
Herefordshire Council has applied for permission to cut down a 12-metre (40ft) flowering cherry tree in St Peter’s Square and replace it with “alternative shrubs”.
Herefordshire Tree Forum spokesman Mo Burns said the forum did not approve of the plan “in the strongest terms”.
“Hereford City’s streetscape already suffers from a severe lack of trees and the loss of any tree further diminishes this situation,” added Ms Burns, the city’s tree warden co-ordinator.
“The lack of street trees in the city center should concern the public, who enjoy the obvious benefits trees provide throughout the seasons, such as absorbing pollution from the air, reducing flash floods, improving mental health and providing shade in our increasingly hot summers,” he added.
But he acknowledged that the cherry tree in question, in a crumbling brick pot, was “poorly planted in the first place, as councils often fail to calibrate the size of the fully mature tree at the time of design”.
Councilor and Hereford Civic Chair Jeremy Milln said: “If the cherry is to go and its loss would be sad, it should be replaced by a new tree – but this time in the ground rather than in a nursery, which costs money, requires lots of watering, breaks down quickly (as this one did) and takes up too much space.”
The administration must apply to the tree in the protected area.
A spokesperson for Herefordshire Council said the felling and replacement proposal “has not yet been considered by our tree officer”, who will prepare a report on “the suitability of the tree in its current location and whether it is suitable for preservation”.
“If the tree must be removed for agreed arboricultural reasons, then time will be taken to consider whether planting another tree or shrub in its place is a suitable option,” they added.
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