Project News 1^st December 2007

(For information on volunteer days and an autumn sponsored walk, see  Volunteering)   

Visitors to Carrifran during the past summer will have noted that larger areas are becoming visibly occupied by embryonic woodland, and may have been impressed by the strong growth of the trees near the mouth of the valley. It is still hard to see, however, the tens of thousands of saplings that have been planted recently on the western slopes.
During the summer we were busy preparing for this season’s planting, which will be more extensive than originally anticipated. Three developments have led to the more ambitious plans. First, we now expect to get funding from the current one-year interim Forestry Commission grant scheme to help us complete the planting high up to the west of the waterfall and on the eastern slopes beyond Broomy Gutter, two areas that were deferred because we then lacked confidence that we could persuade trees to grow so high up. Second, unexpected funding from Lloyds TSB is enabling us to plant 10,000 trees below Todcastles in the extreme south of the site. This area has significant archaeological features, but these have now been surveyed so that we can be sure to give them a wide berth when planting. Third, we decided to enrich the woodland by planting several thousand extra shrubs such as hazel and hawthorn which are still scarce or lacking in some parts of the valley. 

For the first time since 2004 sessile oaks in our area had a significant acorn crop this autumn, and by means of a major volunteer effort at the end of October we collected 26,000 acorns in Glen Trool, Galloway. This should produce enough young oaks to meet our requirements in the valley. The initial success of the treeline planting at over 650 metres (>2100 feet) in Firth Hope last spring has encouraged us to plan to put in a further 5000 shrubs and trees in spring 2008. This will require lots of challenging volunteer effort and four weekend camps have now been scheduled (see Firth Hope High Level Planting). The cost of a helicopter lift has now increased to well over £2000, so we are trying to avoid the need for an airlift by improving a track through the neighbouring plantation so that we can take up trees and materials with a crawler tractor.

Funding for the project, and especially for the work of our Project Officer, continues to be a preoccupation. The Carrifran Stewardship scheme (started after purchase of the site in 2000) has now raised nearly £180,000. About 270 private individuals have established Stewardships by contributing £250, £500 or more. An additional impressive source of strength for the project is the roughly £8000 that we now receive each year through regular donations, and we very much hope that more of our supporters will decide to commit themselves to an annual or monthly gift. Please see Raising the Money if you would like to help in one of these ways, or simply by a one-off donation.

Philip Ashmole

Project Co-ordinator