The Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust (IEHT) is working on a long-term plan to reforest parts of the island using native trees. This project involves phased clear-felling of maturing conifer plantations and a more incremental restructuring of old/moribund woodlands.
The funded project through The Naturesave Trust is to establish an on-island tree nursery in order to grow the necessary native trees required for to restock areas. The nursery will mean a self-sufficient supply of native trees from seed collected on the island. The IEHT is focused on the removal of the current various pine species to be sympathetically replaced for minimal visual impact with productive conifers enclosed within a matrix of native broadleaved woodland. The Isle of Eigg is located on the West Coast of Scotland and is therefore highly exposed to extreme weather along with salty air quality. By growing seed collected on the island, the trees will already be suited to the climate and conditions thus giving a higher success rate compared to imported trees from mainland nurseries. The community benefits by having a reliable source of trees for our future woodland projects with local provenance. This project improves biodiversity and also establish quality firewood for future generations. Education programmes will be provided through volunteer input and collaboration with the primary school.
Read more about this remote island nursery