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Scotland's Native Trees and Shrubs
Origin and provenance
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UK Regions of Provenance. |
For the purpose of ensuring a proper supply of plants it is essential that the distinction between origin and provenance for native trees and shrubs is understood and correctly used. The terms should always be preceded by a geographic location such as 'British' or 'Scottish'. If a more specific zone of provenance, for example Aberdeenshire, is the preferred area of local origin or provenance, 'Local Provenance Zone 202' would need to be specified.
Origin when used to describe the source of a tree or shrub shall mean: ' the geographic locality within the natural range of a species where the parent seed source or their wild ancestors originally grew'. 'The Forest Reproductive Material Regulations' Forestry Commission, 1977.
This definition begs the question, 'can the ancestry of the parent trees be determined with any certainty?'
To avoid doubt and pointless debate, it is suggested that only trees produced from such woodlands shall be regarded as being of 'native origin'. The reference to the origin of trees is also confused with the common usage of the word. A requirement to buy trees of 'Scottish or British Native Origin' does not necessarily mean that they shall be bought from a Scottish or British nursery, despite the potential benefits of so doing!
One could be forgiven for thinking this, for the much quoted British Standard BS 3936: Nursery Stock: Part1: Specification for trees and shrubs: 1992 defines 'country of origin' as 'The country where the plant has been grown for the latter half of the most recent growing season' i.e. not necessarily the country of genetic origin.
Scottish Natural Heritage has compiled an 'Inventory of Ancient, Long-Established and Semi-Natural Woodlands'. This provides the most comprehensive assessment of the locations and extent of native woodlands in Scotland. Trees produced from seed collected from these woodlands could, with some certainty, be described as plants of native origin.
Seed collected from this old hedgerow hazel could be described with some certainty as being of 'local origin'. Old specimens like this make massive clumps either naturally or as a result of coppicing. Within, they become private worlds of decay, shelter and activity for insects and small mammals. Specimens with this character and ecological value need not take hundreds of years to form. A similar effect can be created in less time by planting in clumps or by coppicing.
Provenance shall mean: the place in which any tree or shrub, whether indigenous or non-indigenous, is growing - 'indigenous' in this context means 'occurring naturally'.
The Forestry Commission has identified regions of climatic similarity that can be ascribed to planting stock as an aid to sourcing the most suitable provenance. They are referred to as 'Regions of Provenance'. The UK is divided into four Regions of Provenance. Scotland is broadly divided into two, east and west. These regions are sub-divided as a basis for defining 'local provenance'.
Local provenance - A word of caution - the term 'local provenance' is widely used and misused in the landscape industry. Provenance only asserts that the tree or shrub has been produced from seed or cuttings from another tree or shrub growing in a particular locality. The origin of the parent tree could be anywhere. A holly or willow tree could, for instance, be imported from anywhere in Europe, planted in a nursery or garden, grown on for a year or two and then, quite legitimately, used to produce trees of 'local provenance'.
It is vitally important therefore that the identity of the parent plants from which local provenance stock is produced is known and identified where necessary on a signed provenance certificate. (Example of a Provenance Certificate)
To sum up in simple terms, the origin of a tree or shrub is the place from which it originally descended. For example a stand of oak trees might be growing on an estate in Moray but the acorns from which they grew were imported from France. In this instance the origin of the acorns collected from the trees in Moray is French. Provenance is the place where the trees are growing so in this example any acorns collected from the trees in Moray have French origin but Scottish provenance.
During the reconstruction of the A9 from Perth to Inverness in the 1980s heather was encouraged to grow in an effort to integrate the new road with surrounding moorland. Spreading locally excavated peat assisted natural colonisation. Pot-grown heather plants were planted intermittently at strategic locations to achieve an instant effect. Heather of the correct genus and species was specified. Provenance was not. Heather of unknown European provenance was supplied. Luckily the pot-grown plants of alien provenance were clearly evident and could be removed to prevent them from cross-pollinating with the wild heather population.
In most cases the visual appearance is not so pronounced but who knows what other characteristics may be different and what the long-term effect might be? Once the genie is out of the bottle there is no way to get him back!
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