Tree replanting starts in Cape Town’s Newlands after devastating shot-hole borer beetle infestation

Tree replanting starts in Cape Town’s Newlands after devastating shot-hole borer beetle infestation

On Monday, 26 May 2025, the City of Cape Town embarked on its first reforestation initiative in the southern suburbs, aiming to restore biodiversity and ecological function to an area once lined with majestic box elder trees which had to be cut down after being infested with the tree-killing be...

New trees take root in Newlands after destructive beetle outbreak

Cape Town’s Newlands suburb is initiating a significant tree replanting effort following the devastation caused by the invasive Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer (PSHB) beetle. This beetle has severely impacted the city’s urban forest, leading to the loss of numerous trees. The replanting initiative aims to restore the area’s greenery and mitigate the environmental damage inflicted by the infestation. The PSHB beetle, first detected in Newlands in Jan…