Appeal to save ice age heritage of Scotland’s national tree

Dead Scots pine, or snag, silhouetted against shafts of
sunlight over Gleann na Ciche & Loch Affric

Trees for Life has launched an initiative to save ancient Scots pines across the Highlands of Scotland from becoming the last generation in a lineage of trees dating back to the last ice age.

Through its Caledonian Pinewood Recovery Project, the conservation charity wants to help restore 50 areas of remnant and neglected pinewoods – mainly made up of lone, ancient ‘Granny’ pines which are over 200 years old but dying as they stand, with no young trees to succeed them.

The fragments – scattered over a large area – face growing threats from overgrazing by deer, tree diseases and climate change, and are at risk of

Scots pine National Tree for Scotland call gathers momentum

Mature Scots Pine - RB
Glen Affric NNR

As Scotland’s Minister for Environment and Climate Change, Paul Wheelhouse, today formally launches a consultation on whether Scotland should have a National Tree, conservation charity Trees for Life welcomes growing calls for the Scottish Government and Parliament to establish a National Tree of Scotland, and to adopt the Scots pine for this.

 

The consultation on Scotland’s National Tree, requested by the Scottish Government, was launched by Forestry Commission Scotland in Edinburgh on the 3rd September 2013. ( Sorry I'm a bit late posting this. RB )

 

Alan Watson Featherstone, Trees for Life’s Executive Director, said: “The growing campaign for the Scots pine to be proclaimed Scotland’s National Tree is inspiring. The Scots pine is one of the world’s most beautiful trees, a powerful symbol of Scotland and a keystone species of the Caledonian Forest, which in turn is one of the country’s greatest national treasures.

 

“Declaring this remarkable and important species as our national tree in 2013, the year of Natural Scotland, would send a much-