Landowner plants 3,000 trees near Scarborough (From York Press)

Landowner plants 3,000 trees near Scarborough

9:40am Wednesday 2nd May 2012 in Eco info

A LANDOWNER near Scarborough is doing his bit to help create a UK rich in trees and woods.

Adrian Perham has planted 3,000 native trees on his land at North Style Farm, Hackness, to help create a natural, wild habitat on areas that don’t lend themselves to grazing of animals because of steep slopes.

He has been working with conservation charity, the Woodland Trust, between November last year and March, as part of the trust’s MOREwoods scheme. Trees planted include traditional, native trees such as oak, rowan, ash, silver birch and cherry trees.

“We wanted to create areas of natural, native woodland in between the areas of the farm that can be used for grazing and contacted the Woodland Trust for help and advice,” said Adrian.

“Experts from the trust visited us to discuss and recommend which tree species would be suited to which area and supplied the trees, stakes and covers from a local supplier in York.

“It will be great to see the trees start to grow and for a thriving young woodland to start to take shape and we are delighted that we have been able to support the Woodland Trust’s work.”

The UK is one of the least wooded countries in Europe, with just 13 per cent woodland cover compared to the European average of 44 per cent. Woods and trees provide multiple benefits for people and wildlife, providing new habitat, a source of food and shelter and supporting eco-systems services such as air and water quality.

With only 7.3 per cent of North Yorkshire being covered by woodland, the need to plant more trees and woods today is urgent. Anyone with more than an acre of land interested in creating their own wood or shelterbelts can receive tailored help and advice and, in some cases, funding from the trust.

John Tucker, the trust’s director of woodland creation, said: “The trust wants to double native woodland cover for people, wildlife and the environment. This is the year of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and to celebrate we have launched the Jubilee Woods Project. In February alone we planted one million trees through this and we aim to plant six million by the end of 2012.

“As part of the project we also have a dedicated team of professional woodland creation advisors ready to help landowners create new woods, from one acre to 60 acres, to mark this historic occasion.

If you have any hard-to-work areas, such as field corners, this is a great opportunity to enhance your land and create a lasting legacy.”

To find out more about how you can plant trees and woods through the MOREwoods scheme as part of the Jubilee Woods project, ring 0845 293 5689, or e-mail morewoods@woodlandtrust.org.uk.

To find out more about the Jubilee Woods project and other ways you can get involved, visit www.jubileewoods.org.uk