Borders Wood Pasture

Introduction

Wood pasture and parkland are important elements of the Scottish landscape in the 21st century. Both habitats comprise of trees with some level of grazing. Borders Forest Trust Wood Pasture Project differentiates between them by the amount of tree cover.

Wood pasture is an area of wooded land, generally with fairly widely spaced trees and grazing animals. Parkland is open land, usually grassland, with very widely spaced trees and grazed by livestock. In both pasture and parkland habitats, wide canopied mature veteran trees are often present adding ecological and historical importance to the sites.

Background

These landscapes are often associated with a woodland management culture that has all but disappeared from the countryside and they are commonly regarded as historical artefacts from bygone days. The importance of these habitats is now becoming increasingly recognised and work is being carried out to restore and conserve Wood Pasture across the UK.

In the Borders, BFT is continuing the existence wood pasture and parkland landscapes for future generations through the Wood Pasture project.

Borders Wood Pasture Project

In 2003 BFT was looking for new ways of incorporating trees into the Borders landscape and engaging with farmers and landowners. This was due to changes in farming subsidies and a recognition that there were other ways to establish trees in the landscape than within woodlands and forests.

The Tweed Rivers Heritage Project, which received funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, provided the funding for BFT to survey and map likely areas of the Borders for creating new wood pastures and parklands or restoring old ones and subsequently to carry out the work. Support for the project also came from Scottish Natural Heritage, Forestry Commission Scotland, the European Community Scottish Borders Leader+ 2000-2006 Programme and Scottish Borders Council and most importantly landowners and farmers.

The Borders Wood Pasture Project comprised of two components:

• Wood Pasture Woodland - where areas of wood pasture were protected, expanded and regenerated.
• Wood Pasture Parkland - where individual tree were planted protected in wooden tree boxes.

Locations of the project sites are shown on this map.

In September 2006 to highlight the importance of the Wood Pasture Habitat, Borders Forest Trust co-ordinated a Wood Pasture seminar for land managers, farmers, foresters and conservationists. National experts gave presentations on the history of wood pasture, current research and conservation and restoration work being carried out both locally and nationally. The seminar also provided a platform to launch the Borders Woodland Habitat Action plans including the Wood Pasture and Parkland in the Scottish Borders Habitat Action Plan.

Click here to find out more details about the Wood Pasture Seminar and Wood Pasture research.