RESIDENTS have reacted with sadness that a Gloucestershire landmark might change for generations to come.
May Hill's famous clump of trees is facing the axe because it has been hit with a killer disease, as The Citizen revealed yesterday.
Although Red Band Blight acts slowly, Longhope Parish Council has been recommended to take down the mainly Corsican Pines, most of which were planted in 1887 to mark Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee.
May Hill Brewery boss and Longhope Parish Council member Tony Davis said the trees are not likely to face the axe soon – but they will have to be replaced. The brewery uses the trees for its logo. But they are being slowly killed by the blight, which affects its photosynthesis.
"We are not happy about it but there are some things we can do to slow the process down," he said. "Thinning will help get the wind through, because we're told the blight does well in damp conditions."
Council clerk Andrew Maliphant is a member of the Lassington Oak Morris side which, with other groups, welcomes in the summer at dawn on May Hill on May 1.
"Apparently Scots Pine is more resistant to this disease [than Corsican Pine]," he said. "There are some Scots Pine there already and we're hoping they can stay."
Former May Hill resident Jenni Silver, who grew up in Yartleton Lane on May Hill said the trees were an important part of many people's lives – and deaths.
"The May Hill trees are like a homing beacon," she said. "Losing even a few of the historic trees will radically alter the skyline of the county and neighbouring counties without the trees it is just another hill, not a landmark. I know people who have married at the summit and others who have scattered the ashes of loved ones beneath the trees. Removing the trees will scar Gloucestershire forever."
The May Hill legends: Legend said the name came from Admiral May who ordered the trees to be planted as a visual aid for ships navigating the River Severn, or from links with May Day games . Prince Rupert and his Cavaliers are said to have taken shelter from the trees during the Siege of Gloucester in 1643. In 1905, it was said in parliament that witches were practicing their craft on May Hill when the Markey family 'went insane'. Buried treasure is said to be on the east of the hill at Crockett's Hole – a place of safety in times of persecution under Queen Mary. Richard Ashcroft and The Verve filmed their video for Rather Be on May Hill.