Choosing the right tree species

You can have a diverse woodland by planting a variety of tree species.

Mixed woodlands are more resilient. These woodlands will recover better from disturbances, such as a disease outbreak or fire. Mixed woodlands can hopefully withstand extreme weather events like gales or floods.

Increasing tree species diversity is a key part of the UK Forestry Standard, the standard for sustainable forest management in the UK.

Tree diversity and climate change

Climate change will lead to some tree species growing better in Wales than they have in the past. Other species will do less well because of drought stress or pest attacks.

Planting a wider range of species now is the best approach to make sure your woodland or forest will do well in the future.

You can achieve tree diversity on a range of different scales. This can be individual woodland blocks to larger areas covered by a woodland management plan.

Choosing which tree species are best suited to your site will depend on your objectives as a forest manager and the site characteristics.

The tree species you plant will depend upon soil type, exposure, and climate conditions now and in the future.

Guidance on increasing tree diversity

We have produced a forest resilience good practice guide on improving the tree species diversity of Welsh woodlands.

Forest research have also produced a helpful practice guide on adapting forest and woodland management to the changing climate.