Elms like those at the Palace of Holyroodhouse are being ravaged by Dutch elm disease, a fungus carried by beetles Jane Barlow/PAHalf of the largest elm tree in Europe was brought down by high winds on Saturday. The 400-year-old tree in Preston Park, Brighton, was 110ft high and almost 23ft round. It is one of the “Preston twins”, which escaped the ravages of Dutch elm disease. It has more diversity of elms than any other city in the world, with almost 40,000 trees. The Preston twins were planted in the reign of James I of England and Ireland and VI of Scotland, and formed part of a hedgerow.

Source: The Times August 21, 2017 23:48 UTC