Climate change risk for Scotland's trees

14:18 9th December 2009

The effect of climate change on sea levels and weather patterns has been well documented, but it has now emerged that Scotland's forests could be at risk from the lack of summer rainfall.

Garden and greenhouse fans may have noticed that the warmer weather allows them to grow more exotic plants, but this is not necessarily good news for trees.

Forestry Commission research shows that warmer, drier summers are putting trees like the Norwegian spruce, beech and larch at risk of drought and fungus, the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) revealed.

East coast forests are particularly at risk of dehydration as they are more protected from the prevailing easterly winds that bring wet weather to the west coast.

Those in sandy soil are even more at risk due to the inability of the ground to retain water, causing them to dry out quickly.

Meanwhile, Copenhagen in Denmark is this month hosting many of the world's leaders as they attend the climate change summit where a replacement to the Kyoto Treaty will be thrashed out.