A LARGE monkey puzzle tree in the garden of a house in Little Witley will not be permanently protected by a tree preservation order.

Malvern Hills District councillors have decided not to confirm the provisional order made in August last year so that the tree at Dingle Farmhouse has permanent protection.

The question of the tree's future was raised when the owner of the property contacted the council asking for help in protecting the tree.

The council's landscape officer Chris Lewis-Farley described the tree as "a good specimen of its type" and "clearly visible from the well frequented bridleway running close by".

He recommended that the tree preservation order was made permanent.

But a neighbour wrote to the council fiercely objecting after consulting an independent arboriculturalist and chartered engineer.

He said the tree was a long way from Dingle Farmhouse but too close to his own property - the Granary - and claimed the roots would damage a boundary wall in the short term and completely destroy it over time.

He added that branches were already overhanging his property and the tree was blocking light to his garden all year round.