What's eating my fagus sylvatica 'dawyck'?

Fagus sylvatica 'Dawyck' is vulnerable to beech woolly aphid, which produces cottony colonies on bark, and to beech scale leading to beech bark disease. Grey squirrels strip bark and destroy young leaders. The emerging beech leaf disease nematode is a serious new threat causing leaf crinkling and death in affected areas.

Fluffy white waxy colonies on the underside of leaves; heavy honeydew and sooty mould; leaves yellow and drop early; young trees most affected Insecticidal soap or neem oil spray reaching leaf undersides; encourage natural predators including lacewings and parasitic wasps; avoid excess nitrogen fertiliser that promotes soft new growth

White waxy scale on bark introduces Neonectria fungi; bark cracks, oozes, and dies; individual limbs or whole trees killed over several years No fully effective chemical treatment once established; remove heavily infected branches; maintain tree vigour with mulch and watering; avoid wounding bark

Bark stripped from young stems and upper branches in late spring, girdling and killing shoots; damage to the narrow columnar form can ruin the silhouette Tree guards on young specimens; squirrel-proof fencing around the root zone; liaise with local pest control if squirrel pressure is severe

Dark banding and crinkling between leaf veins; buds fail to open; progressive dieback; trees can die within a few years of infection No approved treatment currently available; monitor for symptoms; report suspected cases to local forestry authority; avoid moving soil from infected sites