Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) has announced a significant milestone in its ongoing efforts to restore Scotland's temperate rainforests, achieving a record 1,226 hectares of restoration during the 2024-25 period.

This figure represents a notable increase from the 930 hectares restored in the previous year, highlighting an intensified commitment ahead of World Rainforest Day on Saturday, 22 June.

Work within Scotland's Rainforest Zone, predominantly located along the country's hyper-oceanic west coast and inner islands, involves a multi-faceted approach. Key tasks include the crucial removal of invasive Rhododendron ponticum, the restoration of Plantations on Ancient Woodland Sites (PAWS) to native species, and comprehensive deer management to protect young trees and ground vegetation from Browse damage.

The eradication of Rhododendron ponticum is a cornerstone of this initiative. This aggressive invasive species smothers native rainforest vegetation, monopolising nutrients, moisture, and vital light, effectively creating ecological deserts.

In a strategic move to enhance the fight against this "silent killer" of Scotland's rainforest, FLS is significantly upscaling its use of stem injection. This technique, first identified by Forest Research in 2006 and perfected by the National Trust for Scotland (NTS), involves drilling a small hole into each rhododendron stem and injecting a precise amount of herbicide. This highly targeted method minimises harm to surrounding native habitats.

-- Advertisement --

Richard Thompson, FLS Native Woodland Ecologist, commented on the expansion of this technique: "Following on from the success achieved by the NTS at some of its sites, FLS is starting to use stem injection at large landscape scale. Results have been encouraging and we are hoping to roll out its use more widely across other FLS managed rainforests."

Thompson emphasised the scale of the challenge and the need for collective action. "FLS manages a substantial proportion of Scotland's rainforest, and with around 8,000 hectares of priority rainforest rhododendron areas on land managed by FLS it is imperative that effective and efficient control measures at landscape scale can be refined and deployed," he said. "However, to truly control the spread of Rhododendron, it needs a strategic, collective and collaborative effort from all landowners and managers including estate and residential gardens."

While stem injection is gaining prominence, FLS continues to employ other control techniques, including manual removal (grubbing up) and, where necessary, foliar spraying.

FLS is a key member of the Alliance for Scotland's Rainforest, a coalition of NGOs and government agencies collaborating to clear rhododendron from Scotland's rainforests and woodlands, thereby preserving this globally important habitat.

Beyond its ecological benefits, rainforest restoration plays a vital role in Scotland's wider environmental goals. These efforts are expected to contribute to achieving net zero by potentially sequestering an estimated 1 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year. The restoration work also aligns with the ambitions of the new Scottish Biodiversity Strategy, which aims to be nature-positive by 2030 and reverse biodiversity loss by 2045, while simultaneously creating opportunities for green skills development and rural economic growth.