THOSE of a certain age can probably still recall the billowing shape of elm trees, looming sentinel-like amid the summer greenery. But children of the late 1970s and onwards have never had that pleasure. The devastating ravages of Dutch elm disease means that apart from a few isolated examples, the resplendent elm is now best studied from the pages of a book.

That another historic emblem of our woodlands – the ash – seems destined to follow the elm’s descent into oblivion is a tragedy not only for our environment, but also for our cultural history.

But if the rampant and deadly fungus Chalara fraxinea that blundered seemingly unopposed into the UK is not controlled, future generations will have to once again rely on books and the internet to learn about one of the most important tree species of the British landscape.

For the potential effects of ash dieback could be catastrophic. There are an estimated 80 million ash trees in the UK – accounting for about five per cent of our treescape. The majority of these trees could be lost if the fungus tightens its grip.

This die-off represents more than just a disaster for our woods and forests, such massive tree loss would dramatically change the face of our countryside.

Fast-growing ash helped heal the scars of Dutch elm disease and filled in the gaping holes left in our woods following the great storm of 1987.

A dramatic loss of ash would change the shape and content of our farmland, hedgerows, urban spaces, ancient woodlands, veteran ash pollards and the special place of ash in historic landscapes.

This is all bad enough but, as ecologists constantly remind us, wildlife does not live in isolation.

If ash disappears, so do the habitats, homes, shelter and food sources that the tree provides to hundreds of species.

Ash dieback not only affects ash trees but also the birds, mammals, insects and plants whose lives are inextricably linked to the tree.

Some of our most beautiful finches could struggle if ash is decimated.

The RSPB is particularly concerned about the hawfinch and the bullfinch. Both birds possess huge bills which are capable of crunching their way into the hard seeds of ash keys.

The hawfinch has experienced a major decline in recent years, so ash dieback represents a worrying additional pressure.The Northern Echo: CHANGING APPEARANCE: Ash trees in the English countryside may soon be doomed

Ash keys provide an important source of late winter seed food for bullfinches. The over-winter survival rates are lower in years when the ash crop is poor.

But it is not only specialists that will be affected.

Ash is a wildlife all-rounder; it is an important habitat and food source for many species, particularly roosting birds and bats as well as hole-nesting birds.

Great spotted woodpeckers happily plunder ash keys and use the trees as a sap run. And, in ash-dominated habitats, birds such as redstarts use trees for nesting and breeding – they could be seriously affected if ash dieback reaches these habitats.

But it is our bugs and insects that will bear the brunt of any ash tree fallout.

Wildlife charity Buglife has warned that many insect species are directly dependent on ash.

Butterfly Conservation revealed more than 16 species of moth, ranging from the dramatic privet hawkmoth to the protected barred toothstriped, use the tree. Buglife chief executive Matt Shardlow explains: “Over 100 invertebrate species feed on ash, including rarities such as the ash-bud moth and the waxy ash aphid. Following the catastrophe of Dutch elm disease, the dusky-lemon sallow and whitespotted pinion moth and many other elm-dependent animals severely suffered.

“If ash dieback causes a similar loss of ash trees, then dozens of animals, especially those that solely rely on ash, such as cramp-ball fungus weevil, will suffer.

“For many years Buglife has called for the importation of pot plants to be banned and this disease emphasises the extreme danger of a laissez faire approach to the movement of live plants.”

Some plants could also suffer; ash allows light into woodland which benefits many rare and well-known ground flora such as dog’s mercury and ransomes (wild garlic). Ash has a mild PH level which endears it to epiphytes – plants that grow on the tree, such as ferns, lichens and bryophytes.

But the loss of ash will be reflected on a deeper cultural level. This is a tree that for hundreds of years was believed to hold magical healing powers – in one ritual children were passed through young, split ash trees as a way of treating ailments.

Economically important for coppice, ash has been relied upon for a myriad of other uses – from walking sticks, lobster pots and snooker cues to hockey sticks and coffins.

The ash is unobtrusive and discreet, an everpresent in our landscape – always there but generally unnoticed.

Sadly, we are in danger of only recognising the tree’s vital importance to our landscape, culture and ecology when, like the elm, it begins to haunt our landscape with its absence.