THE mystery as to why a patch of woodland in Whitefield suddenly disappeared has been solved.

The land, at the junction of Nursery Road and Bury Old Road, is owned by the Joseph Holt brewery and was previously home to dozens of trees.

But the trees were cleared on the advice of tree specialists who claimed they had overgrown and were bordering on dangerous.

Dennis Maddocks, a brewery estate manager, said: "We took the opportunity to clear the land by the Coach and Horses pub on the advice of arboriculturists but we have no plans to build on the land."

A spokesperson from Bury's planning department added: "We are aware that trees have been cut down but the land is not owned by us and the trees did not have a preservation order."

The spokesperson confirmed that the council has not received a planning applications for the land.