Agroforestry, which integrates forestry and farming, can provide multiple benefits, and planting trees on farms could help meet UK tree planting targets. In Wood For The Trees part 7, Tom Barnes of Vastern Timber visits Vallis Veg, a small farm in Somerset, to see how they've benefited from growing trees on the farm.

Tom is MD of Vastern Timber, a family owned sawmill specialising in British timber. He's working with film-maker Charly Le Marchant to make a series of short films considering the future of British forests. In this film Tom discusses agroforestry at VallisVeg.co.uk, a small farm in Frome, Somerset.

At Vallis Veg, Chris Smaje and Cordelia Rowlatt, with their team, have planted thousands of trees on their farmland. In less than twenty years, they have established willow to help manage flooding, alder and hazel as wind protection and for firewood, fruit and nut orchards, a market garden, a woodland campsite, and a thriving co-operative forest school based in the newly established woodland. Chris Smaje is author of Small Farm Future, and he writes passionately about farming, politics, social and environmental issues on his very popular blog, SmallFarmFuture.org.uk

Tom talks to Cordelia and Chris about why they chose the trees they planted, and how agroforestry could bring benefits to farming and forestry.

Filmed in December 2020, between lockdowns, and within covid safety guidelines, by Charly Le Marchant. A Pocketfull of Acorns Production.

"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.

Roger and his wife Rachel were given approval in 2016 from the Woodland Trust to plant 750 heritage apple trees and 10,000 native broadleaf trees. The apples are grown as a commercial crop to make cider which is sold from local delicatessens and farm shops in the area as well as from neighbouring Lindores Distillery.

Improving biodiversity and establishing a low input crop that lasts for decades were the primary motivators to integrate apple trees with arable crops. Ten rows of apples trees were planted with in rows 27 metres apart in a field sown with grass, switching to barley for two years and then back to grass. The ambition was to mix arable crops with apple trees, with the trees providing shelter for the crops, helping to improve biodiversity, and produce a low input crop. The broadleaf trees were joined up with existing shelter belts, providing a wildlife corridor and space for grazing livestock. The species are a mix of oak, silver birth, rowan, hazel, Scots pine, with flowering wild cherry and elder to attract pollinating birds.

'Agroecology: Facilitating Mindset Change' is a partnership project delivered by:
Nourish Scotland - https://www.nourishscotland.org/
Landworkers’ Alliance - https://landworkersalliance.org.uk/
The Food, Farming and Countryside Commission - https://ffcc.co.uk/
Pasture For Life - https://www.pastureforlife.org/
Soil Association Scotland - https://www.soilassociation.org/our-w...
Nature Friendly Farming Network - https://www.nffn.org.uk/

This project has been funded through the Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Fund (KTIF), which is funded by the Scottish Government.

https://www.ruralpayments.org/topics/...

In this hour-long idea exchange, agroforestry experts discuss the pros and cons of using sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus) as a tree within an agroforestry system, covering how it grows, its foliage and other important considerations.

A video produced by The Soil Association

The wood security represents a strategic asset for Italy, a major producer and exporter of semi-finished and finished wood-based products. Activities that aim to increase the quality and quantity of resources available at national level are therefore of great importance. Among these, a central role is played by the search for innovative strategies for poplar cultivation, starting from the identification of the most suitable clones for the various uses and more sustainable forms of management in the face of climate change up to the insurance management of growing environmental risks , in a coordinated and integrated framework at national level.

Grzegorz Ciechomski practices regenerative agriculture at La Fuente Farm. The goal is to restore the natural fertility of the soil that has been lost through conventional farming. He farms in very difficult environmental conditions. The soils are low in nutrients and have poor water retention. Precipitation in this region of Poland is very low. However, through years of practice he has managed to develop ingenious methods of dealing with the difficulties. He maintains a large collection of fruit trees in an orchard where he grazes sheep and poultry. The various animal and plant species have their own well-defined functions and complement each other to create a well-functioning ecosystem. Despite the poor soils, the plants are well nourished and the animals are kept in decent conditions. This assures high-quality food products that contribute to the farm's considerable self-sufficiency.

An international online gathering of forest gardening and food forest practitioners and academic researchers
exploring the current state and future prospects for these sustainable land-use systems. With over 60 presenters, Q & A sessions, poster presentations, virtual exhibitors, and additions materials to download, all this material is is now freely available to all

A conversation with Brendan Guinan of Fiorbhia Farm in Portlaoise, Ireland. Fiorbhia Farm is a natural, regenerative free-range farm with agroforestry that combines heritage farming with new technologies.

A conversation with Clive Bright, an organic farmer in Co. Sligo, Ireland. Clive gives us an insight into how trees can aid farm management on drumlin landscapes and how agroforestry has helped his own farm.

A conversation with Aoife Forde, suckler farmer and farm forest owner, Co. Clare, Ireland