Japan may lose symbolic cherry trees in 10 years

Tokyo - Japan's cheery trees are in danger of being wiped out in a decade unless measures are taken quickly to control a mold attacking them, the Flower Association of Japan reported in a survey Monday. The contagious disease, known as witches' broom, slowly devours cheery trees by first taking away their ability to produce flowers, Kyodo News Agency reported. The demise of a national symbol of Japan would disappoint many who routinely gather under the cherry trees around the nation in March and April during the short blossom season. Japanese go out of their way to picnic and party under the trees to mark the start of the warm season and it is traditional for companies to assign newcomers the task of holding down the best spot at a nearby park for the evening 'Hanami' cherry blossom viewing session for the office. The Flower Association is recommending the removal of the lesions from the infected trees threatening to kill the more than 350 kinds of cherry trees throughout the nation. The association's tree doctor said the mold disease spreads to the neighbouring trees from just one infected plant. According to the group's survey conducted between July 2004 and last December, 18 of the nation's 47 prefectures had infected cherry trees. The disease is not contagious to humans, the association added. © 2006 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur

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Japan may lose symbolic cherry trees in 10 years

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