Opinion: Help needed to plant the right tree in the right place

As a farmer and arborist, I am somewhat disappointed with the limited resources available to decide what species of trees to grow on our farmland.  

As most of us know, Defra has boldly set a tree planting target of 30,000ha of new woodland in the UK every year until 2050. We also know that generous grants are available for woodland creation.

So I am somewhat bemused that Defra seems not to have spent a penny on helping farmers to select the right tree for the right place.

See also: English Woodland Creation Offer – what farmers need to know

As a student of arboriculture at University Centre Myerscough, near Preston, I am aware of the resources that are available to my colleagues working in urban areas.

For example, an excellent guide entitled Tree Species Selection for Green Infrastructure: A Guide for Specifiers provides a wealth of knowledge to help select the right tree for a range of urban planting scenarios.

But if you Google “free trees for farms”, or various related searches, the top result is the Woodland Trust. 

Now, I have not got a problem with the Woodland Trust. It does an excellent job at providing free trees and lots of other resources to help get trees in the ground. The problem is that it only advocates planting native trees.

Again, I have no problem with native trees, having planted many on my own farm.

However, what I feel we should be doing, as my urban colleagues do, is planting a wider diversity of tree species – both native and non-native – so we have more resilient and diverse woodlands that will be more capable of surviving both climate change and the increasing number of pests and pathogens that are coming into our country.

The Forestry Commission, by its own admission, is fully aware that we need a wider diversity of tree species to cope with climate change; unfortunately, this point doesn’t seem to be working its way into Defra’s thinking. 

Part of the problem is that the free native trees are being supplied from a limited number of nurseries using local genetic stock, which have been grafted and are therefore genetic clones.

Yes, the Forestry Commission is doing some excellent work at sourcing seed from native tree species that grow further south in Europe, where the climate now is like where ours is projected to be in 50 years’ time.

However, the availability of these trees is very limited.

As a farmer, I feel Defra should be putting significant resources into accelerating this process, prioritising funding for tree species that offer resilience to future scenarios.  

With the Basic Payment Scheme soon to be gone, planting trees will surely be climbing the list of priorities for farmers, due to the grants available, the tax-free income from timber sales, income opportunities via biodiversity net gain, and the opportunity to sell carbon credits.

However, this only really works if you have trees that are alive to grow and trade. A better understanding of what species to plant on your land will be critical.

The current systems seem like it is more preoccupied with getting trees in the ground to hit government targets.

So come on, Defra, don’t you think you have a responsibility to put some resources in place to help farmers select the right trees for our future?