Best faster growing trees for supporting wildlife

deadlybuzzman

My family have a field that's lightly grazed but has alot of large patches of briars. I have a plan to plant tree saplings along the edges of these patches and also being the perimeter electric fence. As the saplings grow so will the Briar patches, protecting them.
I've some Hazel and Ash already planted and I'm planning on putting plenty of willow cuttings straight into the soil in a few weeks.
Other than these species what else would help support and encourage wildlife? Preferably the faster growing the better. I have oak seedlings lined up for more careful planting in a few years time

Birdnuts

Birch and Alder are fast growing given the right soil/moisture profile

magicbastarder

unfortunately you'll need to prepare for a lot of the ash dying. as above, birch is a good 'nurse' tree. grows quickly, shades out grass, but does not throw a deep shade .

deadlybuzzman

Yes I I've read a bit about the Ash die back and it seems some trees survive although they are severely stunted which I would be OK with if they still benefited the ecosystem.
Come to think of it, apart from trees what other plants should I be considering?

magicbastarder

if it's just a strip of trees, you'll probably find that there's not enough shade thrown to favour woodland plants - so it's quite likely brambles will establish. not a bad thing in and of themselves, if you want wildlife.

x567

Agree with Birch and Alder (particularly if the land is wet at all), but you might also think about some fruiting hedgerow trees which are good for wildlife, maybe around the edges. Hawthorn, Elder, Wild Pear, Crab Apple, Guelder Rose etc. I've just planted what I hope will become a good wildlife hedge with a pack of 25 mixed bareroot plants from an 'Edible Hedge Pack' (from Quickcrop) and added in a few more Guelders.

deadlybuzzman

magicbastarder wrote: »

if it's just a strip of trees, you'll probably find that there's not enough shade thrown to favour woodland plants - so it's quite likely brambles will establish. not a bad thing in and of themselves, if you want wildlife.

It'll be more like a few patches here and there. You're right there isn't any shade and as good as brambles are, as it stands its a bit of almost a monoculture from a wildlife point of view and that's why I'd like to expand the range of plants present.
As it stands the only oak tree I have ever seen in my parish is 10cm high and in a pot at my house. That give you an idea of how little plant variation is in the area

deadlybuzzman

x567 wrote: »

Agree with Birch and Alder (particularly if the land is wet at all), but you might also think about some fruiting hedgerow trees which are good for wildlife, maybe around the edges. Hawthorn, Elder, Wild Pear, Crab Apple, Guelder Rose etc. I've just planted what I hope will become a good wildlife hedge with a pack of 25 mixed bareroot plants from an 'Edible Hedge Pack' (from Quickcrop) and added in a few more Guelders.

That's a brilliant bit of info, I'll definitely be checking them out!

PoorFarmer

x567 wrote: »

Agree with Birch and Alder (particularly if the land is wet at all), but you might also think about some fruiting hedgerow trees which are good for wildlife, maybe around the edges. Hawthorn, Elder, Wild Pear, Crab Apple, Guelder Rose etc. I've just planted what I hope will become a good wildlife hedge with a pack of 25 mixed bareroot plants from an 'Edible Hedge Pack' (from Quickcrop) and added in a few more Guelders.

Wild cherry, Rowan, hazel and black blackthorn would be good addition to an edible hedge too. Blackthorn suckers like nobodies business though.

Dog rose is great, but more of an uncontrollable shrub rose, that birds love!
Anything with berries is worth while investing in because it has a 2 fold interest. Nectar for insects early in the year and berries for the birds later in the year.

I love the guelder rose, stunning flowers and beautiful berries.

I’m not sure about growing rates but pyracantha and berberis are fantastic for wildlife. Bees go crazy over them, and my parents always said that they knew when the weather was about to turn because the birds would feast on the Berberis berries before the bad weather kicked in.

Keep an eye out for RHS plants for pollinators list, they give a great guide to what’s best to plant for wildlife.

gozunda

Bird cherry is native and very good wildlife. Also more of shrub than trees - hawthorn, Hazel and crab apple are recommended

But be careful briars / bramble can out compete young trees / result in poor growth rates. Make first young trees have a clear space around them to help them establish.

As brilliant as hawthorn is, it’s driving me a bit mad! It seems to be indestructible and untamable! it’s like the terminator of the tree world,pick your spot wisely, or it’ll be back! Not amount of controlling seems to work, cut a piece to tame it and it renews :rolleyes:

Birdnuts

SnowyMuckish wrote: »

As brilliant as hawthorn is, it’s driving me a bit mad! It seems to be indestructible and untamable! it’s like the terminator of the tree world,pick your spot wisely, or it’ll be back! Not amount of controlling seems to work, cut a piece to tame it and it renews :rolleyes:

LOL - don't ever get into a fight with Blackthorn so!!;)

NcdJd

SnowyMuckish wrote: »

As brilliant as hawthorn is, it’s driving me a bit mad! It seems to be indestructible and untamable! it’s like the terminator of the tree world,pick your spot wisely, or it’ll be back! Not amount of controlling seems to work, cut a piece to tame it and it renews :rolleyes:

Great tree for wildlife though Snowy.

I'll add Rowan and crab apple to the ops list. Holly also but is slow growing.

kildare lad

I came across a page on facebook called clarinbridge garden centre , they seem to sell lots of different varieties of trees , plants etc. Some of the trees they sell are already a few feet high , that might save you time if you were going to plant the trees yourself from seeds. I'm not really up on plants or trees but It might be worth a browse for what your looking for.

jmkennedyie

Some great suggestions. My Bird Cherry in autumn had 9 bird species feeding on it - at the same time!! Fast growing. Throw in a buckthorn in case any brimstone butterflies in the area.

You could also just let some areas stay wild to give any remaining local trees a chance. I have seen an agricultural field turn into thick woodland thickets (and orchid grassland) within 10-15 years naturally.

You may know already but if acquiring native species it is recommended to source plants from native Irish stock. They have evolved for our climate, flora and fauna, and our biodiversity has evolved for them. Plants sourced from mainland Europe, for example, should be avoided as they have evolved to survive a different climate and range of insects, birds, fungi, etc etc.

I'm not familiar with suppliers others have mentioned but I'd give a thumbs up to https://futureforests.ie/

NcdJd

jmkennedyie wrote: »

Some great suggestions. My Bird Cherry in autumn had 9 bird species feeding on it - at the same time!! Fast growing. Throw in a buckthorn in case any brimstone butterflies in the area.

You could also just let some areas stay wild to give any remaining local trees a chance. I have seen an agricultural field turn into thick woodland thickets (and orchid grassland) within 10-15 years naturally.

You may know already but if acquiring native species it is recommended to source plants from native Irish stock. They have evolved for our climate, flora and fauna, and our biodiversity has evolved for them. Plants sourced from mainland Europe, for example, should be avoided as they have evolved to survive a different climate and range of insects, birds, fungi, etc etc.

I'm not familiar with suppliers others have mentioned but I'd give a thumbs up to https://futureforests.ie/

Future forests are a great company. I've used these for years. Origin of the native trees you buy is important. Hawthorn that had been grown in the Holland flowers earlier than the native Irish species. You can look out for this along motorways that have been planted.

magicbastarder

if there is hawthorn already established in your area, you do do a *lot* worse than collecting seed in autumn/winter and planting some up yourself.

x567

Agree totally with the importance of using native trees; and would also recommend Future Forests. The other source that I’ve used in the past was fruitandnut.ie who were fantastic, but I see that very sadly the owner there has recently passed away and the business closed. They’ve left the website up however as it’s a great source of information. I’d recommend a look at it for anyone planning tree planting.

x567

https://mobile.twitter.com/Rebirding1/status/1288498135157833729

Hopefully this link will take you to an interesting twitter thread on the wildlife value of specific trees. Written from an England perspective but most hold true for Ireland I think…

deadlybuzzman

This is all great advice. What do you guys think of me propagating elder? Seems fast growing, has lots of berries and lots of it used to grow in my area

hirondelle

deadlybuzzman wrote: »

This is all great advice. What do you guys think of me propagating elder? Seems fast growing, has lots of berries and lots of it used to grow in my area

Many people would say you are mad! (It's a weed etc.), but it has really good wildlife value. I would be cautious once it is established, maybe even cut it back substantially every year or two. It creates "holes" in hedgerows where it gets big, then inevitably splits or breakds and you are left with dead wood in the middle. I bought the purple variety to have a specimin for wildlife but planted it away from the my native hedgerow to avoid the above issue. This variety has been painfully slow to "catch" but it is very attractive.