The UK’s driest Spring in 50 years 🌞

It has been a challenging year so far for newly planted forestry sites across the UK as rainfall was approximately 40% below average, making it the driest spring since 1974 and the sixth driest since records began in 1836.

Most forestry planting is done bare-root, where during the dormant winter months new trees are placed in the ground with their roots bare and open - requiring them to establish and integrate their root system in their new environment. This makes for faster and cheaper planting for forestry teams.

A lack of rainfall however can lead to a dramatic impact on survival rates for these newly planted trees as the roots are not well hydrated or able to establish in hard and dry unforgiving soil conditions. We have already heard of high yield losses across parts of the UK.

Fortunately, as those of you that have come and planted with us can attest, our Giant Sequoias are pot planted, meaning we plant them with the soil from their pots still in tact around the roots. The reason for this is Giant Sequoia roots are extremely fragile so it is not possible to remove the soil. Our Sequoias therefore have a better chance of survival in these conditions than their bare-root planted companions.

This year has also given us a moment of reflection on site positioning. Our groves at both Brecon and Abergavenny are North facing. At the time of purchase this was considered sub-optimal as tree growth rates are typically higher on southerly facing slopes. What we have come to appreciate since is that a North facing slope provides shelter from extreme heat and retains moisture better when their is a lack of rainfall. Given our raison d'être is the long term protection and survival of our Giant Sequoia trees, this initially perceived disadvantage has actually become an significant benefit and protection - particularly as climate change is likely to make our climate hotter over years to come.

We will be back on site in October for a site review, and then again in March for our annual walk through of every tree to check up on how they are all doing - and where if we find any failures we will replace with a new tree as part of our guarantee to all our Sequoia Patrons.