Right tree, right place - our tree planting process

Written by Nick Marsh, Forest Creation Manager, Forest of Marston Vale Trust

Posted 22/09/2025

The Forest of Marston Vale Trust has been planting trees and creating woodlands since the early 1990s. To date we’ve planted 13 Community Woodlands of our own and helped countless other local landowners to plant trees, from schools and parish councils to farmers and private landowners. Over 2.75 million trees and shrubs in total, taking tree cover in the area from a meagre 3.6% to an impressive 16.9%. But tree planting is not simply about digging a hole and putting a tree in it – there's lots of planning required to make sure we get the right tree in the right place at the right time and for the right reason. Nick Marsh, one of our Forest Creation Officers has written this blog taking you through all the work that goes into planting.... 

A seed of an idea 

Tree planting begins as an idea, a concept with many variables and for many reasons. People like trees; they are majestic, have presence, are long-lived and provide multiple benefits, from the obvious environmental ones to social and economic ones too. 

Every landowner has specific reasons for incorporating tree planting on their land. These can range from the physical attributes of trees providing screening, shade and shelter to a more aesthetic purpose which can enhance a landscape, introduce vertical structure and create prominence. There can be financial incentives in carbon capture and positive impacts to both physical and mental health. 

The process will often start with a desktop assessment (using a plan provided) allowing data to be pulled together and an early screening of significant and restricting factors to be made. These could be: 

Type of land

Historical and natural features, registered, designated or protected matters.

Image: Map view of King's Oak Primary School planting area

Boundaries

Neighbouring points of interest such as parkland, developments, viewpoints, woodlands, sensitive land, etc.

Image: Octagon Farm drone image 2022

Schemes

Establishing if the land is under a subsidy scheme such as Countryside Stewardship which may affect eligibility for funding.

Image: Darren Woodward, Forest Development Manager at Silsoe planting site

Tenure, easements and rights of way

These can be found often using searches and mapping data. 

Services

Using one of several land search sites, information on main power, gas, oil or water infrastructure can be sourced.

First visit to site 

Armed with a good understanding of the land, ownership and potential constraints, this is followed by a visit and discussion. The desktop exercise provides a focus on where restrictions apply which allows a more productive meeting to happen and also saves valuable time and effort in having to address these further into the process. Forearmed is forewarned! Tree impacts are invariably about growth above and below ground - so looking up and understanding what’s down is essential! 

Meeting the landowner and walking across the site to gauge their ideas and gather initial information is essential. Viewing the site at an early stage is critical to determine planting feasibility, particularly ground truthing (validating and verifying the remote desktop assessment) and assessing constraints such as: 

Accessibility

Can vehicles get to the site for deliveries and can materials be moved around?

Image: Planning at Milbrook, March 2023

Services

Powerlines, drains, buried cables – is the mapping data correct and is the landowner aware?

Image: Rectory Farm, North Crawley

Buildings and other structures

Proximity and height. What impact will trees have?

Image: Jo Roberts, Community Engagement Officer at Sheerhatch School, Bedford

Neighbouring land

 Are there good relations with neighbours? Will the trees cause shading issues? Consider boundary ownership (whose hedge and fence line is it!). Major infrastructure owners will have wayleave/buffer restrictions which will often, and legally, impact neighbouring land – e.g. tree species types close to railway lines or solar panel/wind farms.

Image: Medbury Farm, Bedford

Heritage

Earthworks or above ground archaeology/features, scheduled monuments. 

Image: Houghton House, structure near Queens Wood

At this point, the discussion is about blending a landowner’s idea about why they want trees with where they can plant them to ensure a successful outcome. Sometimes specific species will be requested, to provide interest or visual impact, including evergreens, autumn colouring, flowering or understorey concentration. Species selection is often determined once the overall concept has been considered. Taking photographs at this point is essential, as both a pre-planting record and an aide memoire for recalling layout, topography and general landscape understanding.  

Image: Nick Marsh, Forest Creation Manager at Rectory Wood, North Crawley.

The design stage 

Armed with desktop information, verification and outline ideas, a draft concept plan is produced. Tree planting can range from woodland creation to low density wood pasture and hedgerows.  At scale, woodland design can often include individual planted compartments separated by open space (such as margins and rides for future access), box junctions, intersections and glades. These components of larger woodland projects are important for biodiversity and management and will vary considerably according to the type, structure and variability of the woodland. Often, open spaces coincide with sensitive areas such as buried archaeology.  

Spacing of tree planting is a determining factor of what is being created and intended. Woodland stocking density is set out through national guidance and specification. Other planting will vary according to requirement - wood pasture can be widely spaced to enable tree crowns (uppermost part of branches and leaves) to expand and provide the shade and shelter for which they are intended. Agroforestry is increasingly being recognised for its importance of integrating trees into farming and the design will be dictated by what crop is being managed within the rows (or alleys) between the trees.  

The early design plan will set out the positioning of the tree planting, type and noting of constraints as already established. This will often be subject to a number of iterations with the landowner to refine the concept and achieve the desired outcome.  

What to plant 

Tree species will start to be considered, based on site understanding (what already grows well and exposure), soil assessment (auger test), national soils/fertility data and matching trees with sites using a system called Ecological Site Classification. Together these will provide an overall understanding of which trees will be suitable, resilient and meet future climate change demands. Increasingly, intricate mixes of species of a wide range of types and provenances (where they are from) are being proposed, some from the continent where they grow in a warmer climate. When planting we look decades into the future; species we currently consider as either ‘exotic’ or ‘ornamental’ may well become part of our planting programme, including Macedonian pine, tulip tree, sweetgum hickory or southern oaks (white/red) for example. Some of our lessor known native species including wild service tree are known to be adaptable to climate change and so may become a more important component of our woodlands going forward.  

Consulting on the design 

A number of stakeholders will be involved in the project, particularly at an early stage. Engagement can ensure buy in to a scheme as consultees appreciate being notified and involved as the design progresses. Feedback can positively influence the outcome and avoid unnecessary changes later on. Depending on the complexity of the project, there can be several consultees from national to local organisations, communities to individual people.  

The Forestry Commission (FC) is the regulator and for larger projects (over 0.5ha) with greater density and complexity, they will evaluate an application under the Environmental Impact Assessment (afforestation) Regulations. The process addresses aspects of landscape, environmental and historic impact to ensure that due diligence has been completed and a determination made. A meeting with the FC woodland officer on site helps the flow of information into the design and specification of the tree planting. 

Getting trees in the ground 

We source most of our trees and materials from a national nursery who will supply, deliver and manage the logistics of call offs for the various projects (delivering specific trees to different sites). Other specialist requirements for parkland or heritage orchard trees are obtained from other suppliers.  

Trees require protection from deer, rabbits and hares in the majority of cases. For the most part, individual tree protection in the form of tubes is provided. These are now manufactured from either plastic or biodegradable materials (ranging from pine resin, cashew shells, wood fibre and wood). There are arguments for both types – plastic can be endlessly recycled, whilst biodegradable can be left and degrade on site over time. Cost, site and location are all factors which are used to specify the protection need and suitability. Fencing or metal mesh guards are also used if the tree planting requires more permanent segregation from livestock to ensure successful establishment.  

Planting conventionally takes place from November to March using bare root stock in a dormant state (grown for two years and dug up to be planted immediately following delivery). Increasingly, cell grown stock is being used which are typically smaller one year old plants grown within a small cell of compost and can be planted at any time of year. The latter provides the flexibility of being planted outside the seasonal restriction. Ground conditions and weather can all impact on the ability to plant, so flexible delivery processes are key to ensure we are able to complete the programme before the end of the period.  

Post planting  

Aftercare of trees in the months and years following planting is key to successful establishment. There is a growing recognition that seasons are changing, and weather patterns are consequently being affected. Spring months have been drier in recent years, so earlier seasonal planting combined with good stewardship is important.  

Young trees, particularly those planted in pasture are subject to water and nutrient competition from roots of grass, especially perennial rye and can easily become overwhelmed. Tubes encourage growth of trees by forming a microclimate, but these can also encourage other plants to do the same. Spray treatment of glyphosate around the young trees suppresses weed competition and enables the young trees to quickly set roots during the early stages which then promotes vigour.  

Some trees will invariably succumb to conditions and generally we would expect around 10% mortality within the first-year post planting. Over the next three years, we replace dead trees and continue with spray treatment so that by the end of this period, the tree planting project should be healthy and thriving and moving towards independent, sustained growth.  

Image: Sheerhatch Primary School in 2025.This site was planted in year 1 of the Trees for Climate programme in 2019/2020.

What does the future hold? 

Everything is changing in the world of tree planting. We need trees for nature, the environment, our health and the economy. They are a vital part of our socio-economic status. The right tree in the right place with the right care will ensure that we have a thriving treescape.  

Build a legacy

The Forest of Marston Vale Trust helps landowners, farmers, schools, and communities enhance land and create green spaces.

A Trees for Climate grant can cover up to 100% of planting costs, with ongoing support and payments for environmental benefits. 

Enquire now