Woodland Creation – Native Broadleaves in Northern and Western Isles
This is an old version of the page
This is an old version of the page
Date published: 30 March, 2015
Date superseded: 2 July, 2015
Aim
The aim of this scheme is to create native woodlands that contributes to the Orkney, Shetland or Western Isles woodland strategies.
Eligibility criteria
You must meet all eligibility criteria listed in the Woodland Creation page and:
- you must comply with the UK Forestry Standard
- the minimum planting width is 15 metres
- the minimum block size is:
0.25 hectares, up to a maximum of one hectare, for the Northern Isles
0.25 hectares, up to a maximum of three hectares, for the Western Isles - your application must meet the composition criteria in the table below
| Composition of native broadleaves in Northern and Western Isles | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Item | Minimum (per cent) | Maximum (per cent) | Minimum stocking density on the planted area at year five (per hectare) |
| Native broadleaves or shrubs [1] | 65 | 70 | 3000 |
| Mixed broadleaves or conifers where appropriate | 10 | 20 | 3000 |
| Designed open ground [2] | 0 | 15 | n/a |
| [1] Up to 20 per cent of the native broadleaves can be native woody shrubs. [2] You must refer to the designed open ground guidance on the Forestry Commission Scotland Technical Support page to see how designed open ground will apply to your application. For example additional open ground, in excess of the specified percentage, may be permissible depending on the specifics of the site, but will not be eligible for grant support. | |||
Please note that in order to achieve 100 per cent from the table above you will not be able to select all minimum or all of the maximum values.
Species selection
As an initial first step in determining whether or not the site is climatically suitable, you should view the Forestry Grant Scheme (2014–2020) Site Suitability folder on the Forestry Commission Scotland Map Viewer page.
To be successful sites will need moderate soil fertility, local topographical shelter and be accessible. For the Western Isles this will mean a presumption against planting in exposed west or north coast locations. Please discuss with your local conservancy office.
For all native broadleaves planted within this option, you must provide a copy of the supplier's document when submitting an initial planting claim (see Forestry Commission Scotland Technical Support for an example document).
This should include information such as quantity, the region of provenance and Master Certificate Number.
See the Forestry Commission's Marketing and Supplying Forest Reproductive Materials for further information.