News

Scientists have discovered the first ash tree in the UK tolerant to ash dieback (caused by the fungus Hymenoscyphus fraxineus).  The discovery of this tree, in Norfolk, opens up the possibility of breeding for tolerance to the disease in future. Click here for further information

A large EU Horizon project on agroforestry, REFOREST (Agroforestry at the forefront of farming sustainability in multifunctional landscapes in Europe) has commenced.  The project, which aims to promote agroforestry, has 14 partners, and the UK is represented by The University of Reading and the Organic Research Centre. More information

John Davis is promoting a design of shelterbelt, Optimal Shelterbelt (OSB), that should give a significant increase in warmth and humidity in the local microclimate.  This is currently being trialled on farms in the Cotswolds by FWAG-SouthWest. Further details

A new literature review on the topic published by Natural England on 8th October 2021. More information

Defra's Future Farming Innovation Programme for England opened for applications on 20th October 2021, and will remain open for 5-6 weeks.  There are three types of projects funded in this first round, Research Starter Projects, Feasibility Studies and Small R&D Partnership Projects.  The eligibility criteria specifically mention 'Agroforestry' as one of the sectors to be funded.

The Landworkers' Alliance have released a report 'The Promise of Agroforestry: Lessons from the Field'.  This draws on examples of 8 projects in the UK to highlight the benefits of agroforestry in practice. See document

The 5th European Agroforestry Conference, to be held in Sardinia, has been postponed to 5th - 7th October 2020. 

Early bird registration has been postponed to 30th June 2020.

New agroforestry tree plantings at SRUC. For more information

WWF Scotland published a report 'Delivering Net Zero: Scottish Agriculture' in November 2019.