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Integrating trees into our farmed landscape

 

Key recommendations: 

• Convene more Woodlands for Water projects, targeting farmland most at risk from flooding and catchments with the lowest amount of riparian planting.

• Conduct in-depth mapping of current rates of riparian planting along English watercourses.

• Deliver the new, well-funded option for agroforestry in the Sustainable Farming Incentive.

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Where mass afforestation is possible and environmentally appropriate, it should be incentivised. But sometimes trees are best integrated into the existing landscape, here and there, rather than everywhere. 

 

Many areas in England, for example, quickly run into issues when trying to access tree planting grants pertaining to ground nesting bird sites. These precious and rare birds, such as curlews and lapwings, and their habitats, are protected by rules and regulations. The nature of their nesting means they steer clear of wooded areas, where predators can lurk in the shadows. 

 

This is certainly not conducive to the mass afforestation of land that is required for timber production demands or to meet our emissions reduction targets, nor is it helpful for farmers and other land managers that wish to access the government's Woodland Creation Offer. Faced with obstructions, landowners and managers of all types and sizes may ditch their planting ambitions. This has led to great frustration in the productive forestry and agricultural sectors in areas with populations of ground nesting birds. This has been alleviated somewhat with the publication of government guidance on the matter, but there is still work to be done to communicate this effectively on the ground and ensure that the vital task of protecting nesting sites does not inhibit wider tree planting efforts. 

 

Undeniably however, some areas of unproductive farmland can and should be converted into woodland, as the Woodland Creation Offer encourages, but this is not the case for all farmland. In some instances, trees can be integrated into productive farmland in interesting and innovative ways. 

 

Hedgerows are an iconic feature of our countryside but are not always regarded as the trees that they are despite their vital role in sequestering carbon and providing a haven for wildlife. The government deserves great credit for the steps it has taken to legally protect hedgerows and the creation of dedicated standards for hedgerow creation within ELMs. 

 

Alongside the restoration of these traditional features, farmers can integrate new and innovative approaches to tree planting on their land. So-called “agroforestry” can take many forms such as alley cropping and windbreakers, as well as working on arable and livestock farmland. In doing so, agroforestry not only boosts biodiversity on fields but, according to the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust, can improve water quality, soil conservation, and carbon sequestration, while creating economic opportunities for farmers and their local communities.

 

The government has committed to rolling out a new SFI payment that specifically targets agroforestry, complementing its target outcome for “increased uptake of agroforestry so that it becomes an increasingly normal part of farm businesses for 2050”. It should continue to move ahead with the rollout of this new standard. 
 

The natural field margins that are the banks of our rivers and their many tributaries are another area of farmland ripe for tree planting. Planting along water courses creates a buffer zone between the activity on the field and the neighbouring aquatic ecosystem, protecting both. 

 

The roots of the trees can help to protect farmland and improve water quality by reducing soil erosion and slowing down flood waters. Riparian vegetation filters sediments as well as nutrients and chemicals that run off of farmed fields, helping also to reduce the risk of algal blooms and chemical water pollution posed by agriculture. 

 

Yet another benefit of riparian planting is that it provides much-needed corridors through which wildlife can travel without the danger posed by human activity, not to mention the food, shelter, and nesting sites trees can offer along the way, boosting the biodiversity of the watercourse. 

 

Recognising the important role that riparian tree planting plays in protecting both the farmed and aquatic environment, as well as the unintrusive addition to the farmed landscape that these trees can be, more investment into riparian tree planting should be given. Funded by the Nature for Climate fund, the government’s first Woodlands for Water project did exactly this by convening leading environmental organisations to utilise the England Woodland Creation Offer, but unfortunately has been limited to only six catchments. 

 

The Woodland for Water programme should be reignited using the Water Restoration Fund with a new set of catchments across England. Doing so can line huge swathes of natural watercourses with trees, with the surrounding environment and farmland reaping the benefits of doing so. Priority should be given to the highest flood risk areas and those that currently lack trees along watercourses. The government does not currently possess the latter data set and should therefore conduct an in-depth assessment of the current prevalence of trees along watercourses to help determine these target areas. 

 

Whether on the sidelines or stealing the show, trees do have a place on farmland. While some areas may be better suited to larger scale afforestation efforts, this is not always the case. Having options available for all types of on-farm tree planting will ensure that farmers can play the part they often want to play in reaching our national tree planting targets and can reap their own benefits of doing so, in the form of reduced soil erosion and improvements to water quality and biodiversity.