The Leisure & Cultural Services Department today removed a withered old tree in Kowloon Park to ensure public safety.

The Celtis sinensis with a height of 13m is listed on the Register of Old & Valuable Trees. Its health was found to be deteriorating with sparse tree crown density and twig dieback in 2020, and the department subsequently enhanced maintenance work and carried out regular inspections on it.

As the tree’s health condition continued to worsen, inspections and maintenance works were strengthened such as conducting soil aeration and applying fertiliser. However, inspections in August 2022 showed that the wood tissue was dehydrated completely with no new bud emergence observed.

Upon consultation with the Development Bureau’s Greening, Landscape & Tree Management Section, Urban Forestry Advisory Panel and Yau Tsim Mong District Council, and having obtained the Tree Preservation Board’s support, the tree was removed and a Pterocarpus indicus Willd will be replanted.

The department reiterated that it will adopt a prudent approach in inspecting and managing trees under its care, and removal of problematic trees will be undertaken only when no other viable risk mitigation measure is available.