A £13 million fund has been announced to help landowners plant more trees in a bid to protect wildlife and reduce flood risk.
Farmers and land managers across the UK will be able to apply for up to £6,800 per hectare to plant, weed and protect trees.
The next round of the government’s Woodland Creation grant will be made available in September.
The fund – part of the Countryside Stewardship scheme – will help plant more than 3 million trees, creating 1,900 hectares of new woodland.
The government has previously said it wants the UK to plant more than 11 million trees.
Guidance and application forms will be available in September, with the application window opening in January 2018.
A range of grants are available to support the creation of new woodland and sustainable woodland management.
Benefits of agroforestry
This week, a letter was sent by leading farming organisations to Defra Secretary Michael Gove explaining the benefits of agroforestry, which also called for more support.
The letter highlights the benefits of cultivating trees and crops or livestock on the same area of land.
It states that the current Rural Development Programme for England does not include options to support agroforestry, the result of a perceived lack of demand from farmers and landowners to adopt the practice.
In June this year, a major conference on agroforestry – organised by the Soil Association, the Woodland Trust and the Royal Forestry Society – brought together 250 farmers, foresters and researchers.
