Habitat Creation within the Cornwall Wildlife Trust ‘Tor to Shore’ Catchment
Habitat Creation within the Cornwall Wildlife Trust ‘Tor to Shore’ Catchment
Client Brief
A local landowner whose farm sits in the heart of the Cornwall Wildlife Trust’s ‘Tor to Shore’ catchment project approached The Habitat Restoration Co. in the summer of 2025, having secured funding through EWCO to plant native species, re-establish hedgerows and install a traditional Cornish orchard on their farm.
We were provided with a planting plan, specification and desired protection methods for this project. The specification was separated out into three key design elements;
Compartment 1:
This was the planting of 3 large roundels, 25m in diameter, in a lower section of the farm to mimick existing large pockets of historical features with ancient tree cover. These roundels were to support a central “parkland” tree (such as oak, cherry or sweet chestnut), surrounded by a wildlife layer of flowering and fruiting trees, providing pollen and nectar, surrounded again with a browsable layer suitable for livestock consumption. This was designed to provide additional tree cover, but still allow for cattle to graze the surrounding grassland.
Compartment 2:
This included the planting of a traditional Cornish orchard, near to the farm house. This part of the project included dense scrub clearance and ground preparation, with the trees supplied intended to provide a variety of uses and ripening times spread throughout the season. Species such as Cornish Queen, Ben’s Red and Concorde Pear were sourced within 3 miles of the farm and planted with necessary protection methods.
Compartment 3:
The final compartment included the planting of small native trees and woody shrubs along field boundaries that were currently fenced to create a series of new hedgerows, equating to approximately 700m. The idea is to benefit wildlife (bats, birds and small mammals) to use hedgerows to move across the landscape and utilise the fruiting tree species as a food source. A base layer of Hawthorn, Blackthorn and Hazel was used with supporting species such as Crab Apple, Elder and Field Maple installed too.
THRC Solution
The THRC team got started in preparing the ground to be suitable for planting by mowing and strimming existing pastureland as low as possible to the ground. Some existing gorse was removed from desired planting locations, although most was kept in situ as it too provided valuable and varied habitat on the farm.
We then marked out and established “no planting” zones across the hedgerow sections where overhead cables dissected the existing fencelines, and ensured all operatives were aware that no trees were to be planted underneath for obvious reasons.
Ross, Charlie, Patrick and Josh then efficiently marked out the roundels using a measuring wheel, GPS coordinates and water-based line-spray to ensure we were sticking to the density of the roundels required, and we got planting. Trees were planted using the slit planting technique, with cane and spiral protection used for the hedgerow species, 1.2m tubes and guards for the roundels and orchard, and finally, complete with a natural woodchip compost mulch to go around each individual tree.
End Result
We have started the transformation of a relative monoculture former agricultural farm into a thriving ecological wilderness, with habitats connected, existing tree cover expanded, and a huge variety of species of plants offering plenty of food, shelter and nesting opportunities for birds, mammals and insects across the farm. The challenge will be maintaining and getting these trees to establish properly so that they fulfil their design purposes.
We were also asked back by the landowner to complete a second round of planting, which was funded by the Forest for Cornwall. We were asked to simply extend an area of woodland with a straightforward broadleaf creation project, where we planted a native broadleaf mix of standards complete with stakes and tube protection, at a density of 1600 stems per hectare. In the future will create a dense and thriving woodland that expands on existing hedgerows and pockets of ancient trees. Moreover, an area of riparian planting was conducted at the very bottom of the farm, where a tributary of the river Fowey dissects through. This was done to improve water retention on the farm and create cover and diversity along the river’s edge.
