Trees planted under nature project - 05/01/10
A major conservation project will see more than a quarter of a million trees planted across the South East in the next few months.
The first phase of the scheme will begin with 50,000 trees planted at Crowthorne and Bramshill forests in north Hampshire.
At Crowthorne Forest,around 10,000 Scots pine will replace trees that have been felled for timber used in construction, fencing, plallets, cladding, gates and for fuel.
Bramshill will get around 40,000 new trees, some of which will be planted in areas which served as quarries from where gravel was extracted.
Included in the Thames Basin Special Protection Area, the site acts a breeding ground for three rare European birds ? Dartford warbler, woodlark and nightjar.?
The Forestry Commission explains that the cyclic process of cutting down trees and replacing them with new ones supports bird populations by giving them valuable ground nesting habitats.
Says beat forester Nick Hazlitt: "Some people are understandably concerned when they see trees being cut down. But here at Bramshill the tree felling supports rare birds, maintaining the breeding habitat in a secure sustainable way."
