Witch's Broom

Witch's Brooms on a Birch Tree on the Common in Lundin Links.

A Witch's broom is a disease in a woody plant. A dense mass of shoots grows from a single point with the resulting structure resembling a broom or bird's nest. In Britain they are generally found only on birch trees. They are the result of a fungus Taphrina betulea. It does not seriously harm the tree, and because of this it is classed as a gall.

Birch Trees on the Common, Lundin Links.