.svg)
Recommended reading for you
Hand-picked based on your interests
Simplified applications on the horizon
DEFRA is merging CS Mid Tier and SFI into one application process in 2025, making funding easier, faster, and more efficient. Find out what’s changing and how to prepare.
Woodland Tree Health Grants 2025: What You Need to Know
Learn how to access funding to tackle tree diseases, strengthen woodland resilience, and create a UKFS-compliant management plan.
January 2025 Countryside Stewardship updates: What landowners need to know
The January 2025 Countryside Stewardship updates reopen Higher Tier Capital Grants, simplify claims processes, and introduce clearer terms and expanded woodland support, offering landowners financial backing to transform their land with sustainable projects.
Planning Your Rotational Grazing System: A Practical Guide for Landowners
A practical guide to planning and implementing rotational grazing systems, with tips on paddock design, forage selection, and accessing grants like SFI and CS for sustainable grassland management.
Profits and Pastures: The Financial Case for Rotational Grazing
Discover how rotational grazing boosts profits by reducing costs, improving livestock health, and unlocking grants like SFI and CS, while enhancing land value and resilience.
How Rotational Grazing Revitalizes Grasslands and Boosts Land Resilience
Discover how rotational grazing can transform grasslands into thriving, resilient ecosystems, with practical advice, real-world examples, and guidance on grants to fund your project.
The Landowner’s Guide to Turning Grasslands into Pollinator Havens
A step-by-step guide to transforming grasslands into pollinator havens, covering land assessment, planning, evidence collection, and securing grants like SFI and CS.
Turning grasslands into pollinator powerhouses: a guide to grants
Discover the grants and funding opportunities available to turn your grasslands into thriving pollinator habitats, with practical steps to secure financial support.
From flower strips to thriving fields: simple steps to boost pollinators on your grasslands
Discover how small actions like wildflower strips and hedgerow blooms can transform your grasslands into essential pollinator corridors, supported by tailored grants.
The Wildlife Connection: How Species-Rich Grasslands Create Natural Corridors
Learn how species-rich grasslands can act as wildlife corridors, bridging gaps between habitats and restoring biodiversity, all while preserving the traditional charm of your land.
Herbal Leys 101: The Grassland Revolution You’ve Been Waiting For
Discover how herbal leys can transform your grasslands with healthier soil, improved biodiversity, and grants to make it all possible.
From Seed To Sustainability: Creating Species-Rich Grasslands That Pay Back
Discover how species-rich grasslands can enhance biodiversity, improve soil health, and reduce costs, with guidance on funding opportunities and practical steps to get started.
How to Turn Wild Ideas into Wildflower Meadows: A Step-by-Step Guide with Grants
Learn how to transform your land into a thriving wildflower meadow with practical steps, available grants, and tips for long-term success.
Your Complete Guide to Grassland and Meadow Grants in England
Explore how grants like SFI and Countryside Stewardship can help transform grasslands into thriving, sustainable ecosystems while unlocking financial support for environmental projects.
How to Apply for Grassland Grants: A Step-by-Step Guide for Landowners
A step-by-step guide to applying for grassland grants, including key schemes like SFI and CS, eligibility criteria, payment rates, and tips to secure funding for sustainable land management.
Quick Tips to Maximize Income from Low-Input Grasslands
Learn how to turn your grasslands into productive, low-input systems with practical strategies and grants that save costs, boost biodiversity, and increase your income.
From Wasteland to Wonderland: How Low-Input Grasslands Can Transform Your Land and Your Wallet
Discover how low-input grasslands can revive depleted fields, support biodiversity, and unlock valuable grants to transform your land into a thriving ecosystem.
Low-Input Grasslands: Planning Tips to Avoid Common Pitfalls
Learn how to transform your fields into thriving low-input grasslands with careful planning, strategic grazing, and biodiversity-focused practices—all while unlocking grants to support your journey.
Cut Inputs, Boost Rewards: Your Guide to Low-Input Grasslands
Discover how reducing inputs on your grasslands can save costs, boost biodiversity, and unlock valuable grants to transform your land into a thriving, resilient ecosystem.
Why We March: Farmers Share What Brought Them to London
This article captures the personal stories of farmers at the November 2024 protest, revealing their diverse motivations—from fighting inheritance taxes to protecting food security—and their shared determination to safeguard the future of British agriculture.
Hopes for Change: Farmers’ Messages to Policymakers
This article outlines the key policy changes farmers are calling for, from inheritance tax reform to sustainable farming investments, providing a forward-looking roadmap to support British agriculture and rural communities.
Unlocking Countryside Stewardship (CS) for Hedgerows: Comprehensive Funding Options for Planting and Management
Learn how Countryside Stewardship grants can help you plant, restore, and maintain hedgerows while maximizing financial support and enhancing your land's productivity and biodiversity.
The Heart of Farming: What Farmers Want the Public to Understand
This article uncovers the often-overlooked roles of farmers as stewards of the environment, protectors of rural heritage, and contributors to community resilience, highlighting why farming is vital to the nation’s future.
From Generation to Generation: The Legacy of Family Farms
This article explores the cultural and emotional significance of family farms, highlighting how inheritance tax reforms threaten not just livelihoods but the traditions, communities, and landscapes that define rural Britain
The Public’s Plate: How Farming Policies Shape What We Eat
This article uncovers how farming policies impact food security, quality, and prices, linking the struggles of farmers to the everyday choices on your plate and the future of Britain’s food system.
Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier Capital Grants Announced
Explore capital items and management actions in the updated Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier scheme. From woodland creation to flood management, discover funding opportunities tailored to enhance your land and protect the environment.
Accessing the Sustainable Farming Incentive: A Tenant Farmer’s Guide to Opportunity
Discover how tenant farmers can navigate challenges like landlord permissions and short-term leases to access SFI grants.
Top SFI Actions for Small Plots: Turning Untapped Land into Opportunities
Turn overlooked field edges and hedgerows into income-generating assets with the Sustainable Farming Incentive. Discover grants that boost biodiversity, improve soil health, and diversify your farm’s revenue.
Top SFI(Sustainable Farming Incentive) Actions for Small Parcel Owners: Maximizing Your Land’s Potential
Discover how small plots of land, from hedgerows to grassy edges, can unlock financial rewards and boost biodiversity with the Sustainable Farming Incentive. Transform untapped spaces into thriving ecosystems and valuable assets.
Unlocking the Full Potential of the Sustainable Farming Incentive: Combining Grants for Maximum Impact
Learn how to enhance the value of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) by combining it with grants like Countryside Stewardship, the England Woodland Creation Offer, and carbon credits.
Farmers' Voices in Crisis: The Biggest Concerns from the November 2024 Protest
Explore the November 2024 farmers' protest, highlighting key threats to UK farming and the urgent call for fair, sustainable policies.
DEFRA Announces Temporary Closures to Capital Grants: What It Means for Landowners
DEFRA has temporarily closed applications for 76 capital grant items due to overwhelming demand. Key grants like Woodland Tree Health and Higher Tier options remain open, while submitted applications for closed grants are on hold until early 2025
Tree Species Guide for Agroforestry: Choosing, Planting, and Managing the Right Trees
Choosing the right trees is the foundation of any successful agroforestry system. This guide dives into how to select, plant, and manage species that align with your land’s needs and goals, helping you create a resilient, productive landscape.
The EWCO Fast Track Explained
The EWCO Fast Track helps landowners quickly turn underused land into productive woodlands with faster approvals and up to £12,700 per hectare in funding.
The UK Forestry Standard (UKFS): Your Guide to Creating Woodlands
This guide provides practical tips for landowners to ensure their woodland projects follow the guidelines of the UK Forestry Standard.
Your Comprehensive Guide to England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO)
Explore the enhanced England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO), now with increased payments of up to £11,600 per hectare to support woodland creation.
Silvoarable Systems: Maximising Cropland with Tree Rows
Discover how silvoarable systems—planting tree rows alongside crops—can boost your farm's productivity and income. This practical guide covers choosing the right trees, layout strategies, and step-by-step setup tips, plus detailed info on grants to help UK landowners get started.
Silvopasture: Integrating Livestock and Trees for a Thriving Farm
Discover how adding trees to your pastures can keep your animals happier, your land healthier, and your wallet fuller. Dive into silvopasture—smart farming that mixes trees and livestock for bigger rewards.
Agroforestry: A Lifeline for UK Farmers Facing Economic Challenges
Discover how agroforestry can be a game-changer for UK farmers facing economic and environmental challenges.
What is Agroforestry? A Beginner’s Guide for UK Landowners
Agroforestry 101: Discover how mixing trees with farming can boost biodiversity, enrich soil, and even add extra income. From alley cropping to silvopasture, here’s why it’s a smart, sustainable choice for UK landowners.
How the UK’s 2024 Budget Affects Landowners and Nature Recovery Projects
A summary of the UK’s 2024 budget cuts and tax changes, and how it will affect landowners.Plus some very practical strategies for how to deal with them.
Carbon Credit Certification for Woodland Projects: Navigating the UK’s Standards
A comprehensive guide on certifying woodland carbon projects in the UK, covering the Woodland Carbon Code, Peatland Code, and other standards, with step-by-step instructions, practical tips, and advice on leveraging additional funding opportunities to maximise returns.
Selling Carbon Credits from Woodland Projects in England
A detailed guide for landowners in England on generating and selling carbon credits through woodland creation, covering the Woodland Carbon Code’s requirements, the step-by-step process from registration to verification, and strategies for finding buyers and negotiating sales contracts.
Introduction to Carbon Credits and Woodland Creation in the UK
Comprehensive overview of carbon credits and woodland creation in the UK, covering how carbon credits are generated, verified, and sold, and how these projects support the UK’s net zero goals while offering financial opportunities for landowners.
Countryside Stewardship for Tenant Farmers: Opportunities, Considerations, and Challenges
A guide for tenant farmers on navigating Countryside Stewardship, covering available options, eligibility criteria, necessary landlord permissions, and practical advice for making the most of the scheme while addressing the unique challenges they face.
Understanding Countryside Stewardship Capital Grants: Funding for Environmental Enhancements and Farm Infrastructure
Overview of Countryside Stewardship Capital Grants, including funding for hedgerows, tree planting, water management, and infrastructure improvements, with guidance on eligibility, payment rates, and combining grants with other schemes like SFI and EWCO.
Higher-Tier Countryside Stewardship: Advanced Environmental Management and Application Process
Comprehensive guide to Higher-Tier Countryside Stewardship, detailing support for complex environmental projects like woodland creation, habitat restoration, and species protection, along with eligibility criteria, payment rates, and a step-by-step application process.
Mid-Tier Countryside Stewardship: Opportunities and Application Process
Overview of Mid-Tier Countryside Stewardship, including eligible actions like field margins, hedgerow management, and grassland restoration, with guidance on application, payment rates, and combining grants with other schemes for maximum support.
Introduction to Countryside Stewardship (CS)
All the ins and outs of Countryside Stewardship—essential information for the English landowner looking to enhance their land and access financial support.
Eligibility and Application Process for SFI: A Comprehensive Guide for Landowners and Farmers
Worry no more—this article gives you all the insights you need to navigate the SFI eligibility criteria and application process, ensuring a smooth path to securing funding and a successful application.
Combining SFI with Other Environmental Schemes: Maximising Support and Environmental Benefits
SFI can be combined with other schemes and incentives like Countryside Stewardship, EWCO, Biodiversity Net Gain, and carbon credits to maximise funding opportunities and enhance environmental benefits on your land.
Comprehensive Guide to SFI Options for Woodlands, Trees, Hedgerows, and Agroforestry
Learn how SFI can support your tree planting, hedgerow management, and agroforestry goals with detailed guidance on payment options, eligibility, and action plans.
Introduction to the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI)
Introduction to the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), explaining its goals, key components like soil health, hedgerow management, and tree integration, and how it supports sustainable farming practices and environmental benefits in England.
Tree Health Grants: Financial Support for Managing Diseased and Damaged Trees
Comprehensive look at tree health grants in England, detailing financial support options for managing tree diseases and pests, restocking with disease-resistant species, and implementing biosecurity measures under the Tree Health Pilot Scheme and Countryside Stewardship.
Maximising Support through Countryside Stewardship Tree Grants
Guide to Countryside Stewardship tree grants, covering options for tree planting, maintenance, and integrating trees into farm landscapes, along with tips on combining grants like EWCO and SFI for comprehensive support.
England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO): How to Secure Funding for Tree Planting Projects
Detailed guide on the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO), explaining eligibility, funding tiers, application process, and payment rates for supporting tree planting, biodiversity, water management, and climate resilience projects.
Introduction to Tree Grants in England: Navigating Financial Support for Tree Planting, Management, and Health
Overview of the main tree grants available in England, including funding for tree planting, management, and health under schemes like EWCO, Countryside Stewardship, SFI, and private grants, with details on payment rates, eligibility, and application processes.
Understanding Payment Rates and Financial Support for Hedgerow Projects in England
Breakdown of payment rates for hedgerow planting, management, and maintenance under Countryside Stewardship and SFI, along with additional support for capital items like fencing and biosecurity measures.
Tree Health and Biosecurity Grants for Hedgerow Trees
Overview of grants available for managing hedgerow tree health, including funding under the Tree Health Pilot Scheme for felling, restocking, and biosecurity measures to control pests and diseases like ash dieback and oak processionary moth (OPM).
Navigating the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) for Hedgerows
Detailed guide on using the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) for hedgerow management, covering eligibility, payment rates for specific actions (assessment, management, and tree maintenance), and how to combine SFI with other grant schemes for comprehensive support.
Introduction to Hedgerow Grants in England: Funding Options for Planting and Management
Overview of the main hedgerow grant schemes in England, including Countryside Stewardship and Sustainable Farming Incentive options, as well as private and environmental funding opportunities for planting, restoring, and managing hedgerows.
Managing Tree Stress in England: Practical Steps for Thriving Trees
Advice for English landowners on protecting trees from drought, flooding, wind, and temperature extremes, focusing on watering, mulching, pruning, and promoting long-term resilience.
Seasonal Tree Care in England: Year-Round Practices for Tree Health
A comprehensive, season-by-season guide for English landowners on maintaining tree health in hedgerows and small plots, covering pruning, watering, pest control, and protecting trees from extreme weather conditions.
Pests and Invasive Species: Managing Threats to Tree Healt
Practical advice on identifying common pests in hedgerows and gardens, with tips on early detection and eco-friendly methods to manage threats to tree health.
Common Tree Diseases in Hedgerows and Gardens: Identification and Prevention
A guide to identifying and preventing common tree diseases in hedgerows and gardens, with tips on recognising symptoms and implementing practices to maintain tree and hedgerow health.
Introduction to Tree Health in Hedgerows and Small Woodlands
An introduction to managing tree health in hedgerows and small woodlands, covering the importance of healthy trees, common threats like pests and poor soil, and basic techniques for assessing tree health.
Hedgerows and Water Management
Hedgerows help manage water on farmland by reducing soil erosion, improving moisture retention, and preventing flooding through strategic planting and integration with sustainable farming practices.
Hedgerow Maintenance and Pruning Best Practices
A practical guide to hedgerow maintenance, covering the best times for pruning, hedge-laying techniques to rejuvenate old hedgerows, and tools and methods for ensuring long-term health and function.
Managing Hedgerows for Biodiversity
Managing hedgerows to enhance biodiversity involves supporting pollinators, birds, and mammals through techniques like rotational cutting and hedge-laying, while balancing wildlife conservation with agricultural needs.
Hedgerow Planting: Choosing the Right Species
Overview of selecting species for hedgerow planting, focusing on native plant benefits and strategies for long-term success.
Introduction to Hedgerow Planting and Management
An introduction to hedgerow planting and management, covering their ecological and agricultural importance, best practices for planting and maintaining hedgerows, and the legal requirements landowners must follow in England.
Promoting Natural Regeneration in Established Woodlands
An overview of promoting natural regeneration in woodland management, focusing on encouraging seed dispersal, protecting young trees from grazing, and balancing natural growth with active management for long-term woodland health.
Regular Monitoring and Maintenance of Woodlands
Maintaining woodlands through regular health assessments, controlling invasive species, and keeping paths and infrastructure in good condition for long-term sustainability.
Creating a Woodland Management Plan in England
Step-by-step guide to creating a Woodland Management Plan in England, covering key elements, aligning goals, and ensuring compliance with the UK Forestry Standard.
Introduction to Managing Established Woodlands
An overview of woodland management, focusing on maintaining long-term health through regular monitoring, creating a management plan, and balancing goals like sustainability, timber production, recreation, and ecological balance.
How to Apply for Woodland Grants: A Step-by-Step Guide
Step-by-step guide to applying for woodland creation grants, covering registration with the Rural Payments Agency, gathering required documents, completing the application, and what to expect after submission.
Countryside Stewardship Schemes for Woodland Creation
Overview of Countryside Stewardship grants for woodland creation, comparing Mid Tier and Higher Tier schemes, eligibility, and payment rates for supporting biodiversity and land management.
Navigating Government Grants: England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO)
Overview of the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO), covering eligibility, funding for environmental benefits like biodiversity and water management, and a detailed application process.
Introduction to Woodland Creation Funding in England
Overview of funding options for woodland creation in England, including EWCO, SFI, WCaG, and private carbon markets.
Woodland Zoning: Organising Space for Productivity and Conservation
An overview of designing woodlands with dedicated zones for conservation, timber production, and recreation, ensuring a balance between productivity and environmental sustainability.
Selecting the Right Location for Your Woodland
Tips for choosing the ideal location for woodland creation by assessing landscape features, avoiding ecological conflicts, and integrating woodlands with agricultural and recreational land uses.
Setting Goals: Deciding on Woodland Objectives
A guide to setting clear goals for woodland creation, aligning objectives with grants and policies, and balancing short-term gains with long-term benefits for a sustainable project.
Understanding Your Land: Assessing the Site for Woodland Creation
Learn how to assess your land for woodland creation by examining soil, terrain, climate, and existing biodiversity to ensure a thriving and sustainable woodland.
Rewilding: Linking Biodiversity to Ecosystem Services
Rewilding enhances biodiversity and supports ecosystem services by restoring natural processes and creating resilient ecosystems.
Practical Steps for Increasing Biodiversity on Your Land
Overview of practical strategies to enhance biodiversity on your land, including planting native species, creating wildlife corridors, managing hedgerows and woodlands, and implementing sustainable land management practices.
Understanding Biodiversity: The Foundation of a Healthy Ecosystem
Biodiversity is vital for ecosystem health, and landowners can enhance it by planting native species, maintaining hedgerows, and supporting wetlands.
Rewilding and Its Place in Nature Recovery
Rewilding helps landowners enhance biodiversity and restore ecosystems by allowing nature to regenerate with minimal intervention.
Participating in Local Nature Recovery Initiatives: A Friendly Guide for Landowners
A friendly guide for landowners on engaging in local nature recovery efforts.
Woodlands and Tree Planting in Nature Recovery
Landowners discover how tree planting enhances biodiversity, improves soil health, sequesters carbon, and offers financial support opportunities in nature recovery efforts.
How Nature Recovery Can Positively Impact the Environment: A Guide for Landowners
Landowners will discover how nature recovery can enhance biodiversity, improve ecosystem services, and build resilient landscapes, while offering financial support and long-term value for their land.
Nature Recovery 101: A Guide for New Landowners in Rural England
New landowners will gain insight into nature recovery, including its environmental and financial benefits, and how it aligns with national goals, aiding in New landowners will learn about nature recovery, and its environmental and financial benefits. They will also learn about making informed land management decisions that coincide with national goals.
Diversifying Income Streams through Woodland Creation
Woodland creation helps farmers diversify income through agroforestry, hedgerows, carbon credits, and grants, blending ecological benefits with financial gains.
Building Woodlands for Wildlife Corridors: Enhancing Habitat Connectivity
Strategic planting and sustainable management in woodland creation enhances wildlife corridors by connecting fragmented habitats, and supporting species movement and biodiversity.
Restoring Natural Heritage: The Role of Woodlands in Reviving England's Historical Landscape
Woodland creation helps restore England's natural heritage by reviving historical landscapes and ancient woodlands, enhancing biodiversity and reconnecting with cultural identity.
Agroforestry and Integrated Land Management: A New Approach to Woodland Creation
Agroforestry is a practice that integrates trees into agricultural land, enhancing biodiversity, soil health, and water quality. Programmes such as the England Woodland Creation Offer provide financial incentives.
Economic and Societal Benefits of Woodland Creation
Woodland creation offers financial benefits through carbon units, timber production, and grants, while enhancing landscapes and supporting community well-being.
The Importance of Woodland Creation for Environmental Stewardship
Creating woodlands is vital for boosting biodiversity, and improving air and water quality. Read how it supports Defra’s 25-Year Environment Plan for a healthier England.
Striking the Balance: Woodland Creation vs. Agricultural Land Use
Less productive farmland can earn money as woodlands, and enhance biodiversity
