Artist’s impression, credit: AMS Architects
Forestry England is due to spend almost £15m to upgrade a tree nursery in Cheshire.
The new facility, which is due to open in spring 2025 near Delamere Forest, includes construction of the largest seed extractory in the UK which will test and process up to four tonnes of tree seeds per year.
When operational, it will replace Forestry England’s current extractory at Alice Holt Forest in Surrey which was built in 1964.
Forestry England said the aim is to produce seeds for millions of high-quality, UK grown, resilient trees in the decades ahead.
Artist’s impression, credit: AMS Architects
Most of the funding for the scheme is coming from the government’s Nature for Climate Fund, with Forestry England also contributing.
Bosses said the project will boost the organisation’s resilience and ability to supply suitable genetic material for woodland creation and regeneration for the remainder of the century.
The development will allow Forestry England to process more seeds from a greater variety of tree species located in 13 specially planted orchards and 39 seed stands spread across the nation’s forests.
Artist’s impression, credit: AMS Architects
“This investment marks an exciting next phase in developing our forest nursery and seed processing operations,” said Imam Sayyed, Forestry England’s head of plant and seed supply.
“It’s vital we that we continue to grow millions of resilient trees which will be well suited to the climate we expect in the decades ahead and these new facilities will help us meet that challenge head-on.
“The amount of tree seeds available to collect can dramatically fluctuate from year to year with peak years producing as much as four tonnes of tree seeds to store ready for processing and germinating.”
Site image, credit: Willmott Dixon
“The new facility will give us the flexibility and storage we need to respond to each season’s supply of seeds,” he added.
Forestry England is a leading tree seed supplier to the public and private sector, Mr Sayyed said, and the investment would build capacity to deliver high quality service in the decades ahead.
Site image, credit: Willmott Dixon
Among the focus species will be Douglas fir, western red cedar and Norway spruce.
They are expected to grow well and become more prominent as sources of high-quality timber in the country’s future climate conditions.
As well as processing seeds and growing trees for the nation’s forests, Forestry England also supplies other forestry organisations.
Site image, credit: Willmott Dixon
In 2025, depending on the seed crops, bosses expect to supply around 450kg of conifer seeds to the private sector as well as around 7.5m trees for planting in the nation’s forests.
Building a secure supply of high-quality tree seed from diverse species over the years ahead will significantly improve availability for UK nurseries and reduce the amount of seed imported from overseas, they said.
Construction on the site has begun, and the facility’s timber frame was recently completed.
It has been sustainably designed and will be carbon neutral in operation, bosses added.
