Characterisation of conifers in the EU: a tool for crop‐based survey of Union quarantine pests

This technical report was prepared in the context of EFSA's mandate on plant pest surveillance (M‐2020‐0114), at the request of the European Commission. Its purpose is to support the Member States in the planning and preparation of crop‐based surveys of regulated pests in line with Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072. In particular, the report includes the list of the conifer tree species reported as hosts of the regulated pests targeted by the grant GP/EFSA/PLANTS/2022/05 ‐ ‘Development of crop‐based survey tools for plants pests of fruit trees, conifers, and palms and ornamentals in the EU’. In addition, the pests associated with each of them, a classification of their occurrence in the EU, information on the main phenological stages, their main use in EU countries, and the regulatory requirements are reported. Finally, trade patterns involving conifer trees are also discussed. In total, 158 conifer tree species are reported as hosts of at least one of the EU‐regulated pests. Among them, 14 are native to the EU, 23 are non‐native but widely occurring in the EU, 62 are non‐native and only occasionally occurring in the EU, and 59 are considered to be absent from the EU except for some records in private collections or botanical gardens. All but one of the conifer tree species present in the EU are used for ornamental purposes in parks and gardens, whereas only 21 are widely present in natural settings. Similarly, only 26 out the 99 are also used on plantations for production. Considering species used as Christmas trees, Denmark, Germany, Poland and Belgium are the countries that produce and export the highest number, and Germany and France are the most active importers.