Hutton Rudby

This site has suffered very mixed fortunes, with one area showing a 92% survival rate ranging through to an almost total loss in another area. Thistles made some areas inaccessible so we were unable to check the trees there.

Where trees were established they were doing really well, with some of the silver birch more that 4 metres tall, and these had mostly outgrown their guards. Grass could be seen growing inside the guards and some of the surrounding grass and thistles were a good two metres in height.

It was a pleasure to see healthy ranunculus in the nearby River Leven, thistledown dancing in the wind, and many butterflies in the ragwort between the trees, as well as hearing the sound of grasshoppers in the summer air.

We were less happy to notice invasive Himalayan balsam making its way along the river bank, but that river is infested and we cannot dedicate the resources to clearing that entire river whilst also trying to clear the entire Bristol Avon.

Whilst it was nice to see this newly established woodland with the backdrop of a mature woodland over the other side of the river, the missing patches of trees were quite obvious. We need to restock next year and devise a more effective maintenance plan. This site highlights the importance of managing grasses within a semi-rewilded field and woodland.

The landowner was happy to carry out his own survey this year and was very pleased with the result. He estimates that at least 85% have survived, perhaps because of the damp conditions here.

He is also able to carry out his own maintenance, straightening wonky stakes with a mallet after high winds. About a year ago he had the whole area mown so that the trees did not face undue competition.

This year the trees are surrounded by thistles and nettles - being so close to the river the ground is very fertile - but with some of the trees out the top of the tubes he decided not to worry about it for the time being as they seem to be doing well. He has said that the number of butterflies now in evidence is amazing, so biodiversity is on the rise here.

Protect Earth had recently planted 1000 trees nearby at Great Ayton, so we hoped this could be the start of a landscape recovery by joining up the dots between sites. We aimed for a high level of tree species diversity to maximise the area’s usefulness for wildlife.

In total we planted 700 trees and shrubs here with the help of some very enthusiastic volunteers, including ten corporate volunteers from Reuseabox and one of their children, and also some local volunteers. We had expected to take two days but the volunteers worked exceptionally well together and we completed the job in one day!

Feedback from the corporate volunteers was very positive.” We all had a really nice day. Steve and Andy were very welcoming and showed us exactly what to do. All equipment was provided.”

A public footpath runs across the site, so it will be possible for the volunteers to visit to see the progress of the trees in the future.