Agroforestry in the UK - What's holding it back?

"Two ways to encourage more farmers to plant more trees - help with cost and help with information." says Harriet Bell at Riverford Farm. Agroforestry, the growing of trees on farms, has been shown to provide many benefits to farming and more widely - as we have seen in previous films in the 'Wood for the Trees' series. But there is surprisingly small uptake of these practices in the UK compared to other European countries. Charly traveled to Devon (twice) to talk to Harriet Bell, the Regenerative farming lead for Riverford Organic Farms, about some of the reasons she sees that are holding back UK Agroforestry.
Wood for the trees is a series exploring the future of UK forests, from a broad range of perspectives. The series is from film-maker and environmentalist Charly Le Marchant and sawmiller and British timber merchant Tom Barnes. Agroforestry in the UK was edited, produced and filmed by Charly.
#Agroforestry #AgroforestryShow #Forestry #Farming #Silvopastoral #Silvoarable #Nuts #Trees #TreesonFarms #TreePlanting #environment #climatechange

[@mg-sj3ug]

Wonderful!

[@carolinewajsblum7425]

Fantastic, thourough and super interesting thanks!

[@diogenesegarden5152]

I like the idea of incorporating agroforestry with mob grazing systems, effectively creating glades between pastures, separated by belts of woodland. From my own observations as a gardener (ex forester), dappled shade on lawns, as opposed to non shaded lawns shows a marked difference in yield of biomass and lushness, possibly because of dew retention but also, when we do have extended dry spells the grass isn’t exposed to intense sunlight and scorching during the heat of the day. Fortunately this year we have had plenty of rain and the lawns are looking much less stressed. You only have to look under my nemesis, the garden trampoline to understand this.😂
Regarding walnuts, obviously harvesting is an issue for nuts in general but I seem to remember that walnut trees can have a toxifying affect on some plants, and there are certain trees like Cherry whose foliage is toxic to some animals, so as a forage crop it is important to understand what will fit in with your system design. I remember the sheep devouring the foliage of an ash branch that had fallen across a fence line, they seemed to love it.
I always have concerns where decision making is grant led by government bodies as it tends to lead to a see saw of policies from central bodies over time and one size rarely fits all.

[@MichaelScott-s2j]

Great to hear Riverford championing agroforesty and the complexity of pushing the system forward .Just a point on growing any form of nut trees in the UK .I have both walnut and hazel in my woodland here in North Devon and it is a constant battle with the Grey Squirrels and I feel unless we eradicate them the prospect of any meaningful harvest each year is very hopeful to say the least . Thanks

[@WoodForTheTrees]

Thanks for your comment. You might be interested in this discussion on squirrel management, from our film on sustainable forestry. th-cam.com/video/1xkA751072s/w-d-xo.htmlsi=1u1RaBNpvaehZ9qv&t=405

[@Dandelion--]

Excellent, coherent overview of a complex scenario - thank you!

[@WoodForTheTrees]

Thanks for your comment - it's a fascinating topic to look into.

[@SolarPunkStyle]

Brilliant, informative video on the challenges and opportunities here

[@WoodForTheTrees]

Thank you, glad that it has been informative.

[@TheHairyFool]

Some good pionts there, but you need to put some numbers in i.e.planting costs verses future incomes form produce sales and timber value, and time frames.
At the very least it has to be cost neutral.
Applying this to existing hedgerows might be a better option, as there will be no perceived loss of 'productive' land.
Keep the videos coming,

[@RobCleaver]

There are some costed case studies in the Agroforestry Handbook - www.soilassociation.org/media/19141/the-agroforestry-handbook.pdf

[@TheHairyFool]

Thank youfor the link @@RobCleaver

[@lynnpreece8461]

Really interesting points raised 😊

[@WoodForTheTrees]

Thanks for your comment - we're working on a new film that will explore this topic more widely.

[@lynnpreece8461]

I loved the Agroforestry Show this year - very helpful for sharing knowledge and experience 😊

[@jeffpearson6413]

Similar concepts are involved here in Pennsylvania. Sure wish we had more people like your group here in the USA to keep the pressure on the Govt to help transition to environmentally friendly methods.

[@WoodForTheTrees]

Thanks, some problems and their solutions are universal. Good luck in Pennsylvania

[@OsirusHandle]

(high land cost) = only absurd yields is justifiable, and nobody accepts expensive crops when you can buy crops made by people on far lower incomes (high labour cost). i believe agrof. can produce huge yields but ive yet to see any method of actually harvesting things that isnt shockingly labour intensive. perhaps simple strip polyculture helps: I know in south america they are doing big projects where they grow Inga, an edible nitrogen fixing tree, as rows alongside regular crops. But even then...
I suspect if not for tradition and protectionism this country would become a giant suburb like the netherlands.

[@khasimakram5538]

Hello mam nice to here about u can I get any job in agroforestry
Currently i am pursuing masters in agroforestry and food security plz accept my request