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Scotland's Native Trees and Shrubs
The Trunk Road Biodiversity Action Plan
The main thrust of the Trunk Road Biodiversity Action Plan (TRBAP) is to raise awareness that delivering biodiversity is not just the preserve of ecologists and landscape designers. It is, and must continue as, an integral aspect of our everyday working life. Planners, builders and managers of roads must all develop a culture of biodiversity awareness. Biodiversity must become a routine part of all stages of the design process including the selection, procurement and use of native trees and shrubs. Landscape and wildlife, whether in the countryside or in town, are enjoyed by most of us for recreation and relaxation. Landscape and the life it supports are essential for our well-being and for the well-being of generations to come. We all have a responsibility, professionals and non-professionals alike, to do whatever we can to look after the landscape and make good the mistakes made in the past.
The wild crab ( Malus sylvestris) is an underused tree that should be planted more often as a roadside edge species to provide visual interest, both in blossom and fruit. The crabs are a valuable source of winter food for wildlife.
Sylvia Crowe summed up biodiversity in her seminal book 'The Landscape of Roads' (1960)
'How can we explore and enjoy the new experiences which science has opened up for us without losing touch with the organic world of which we must remain a part? How can we explore the moon, yet not destroy the wildflowers, travel faster than sound, yet still hear the bird's song? The basis of any solution must be a genuine respect for both worlds' experience, a vision that will recognise them as two facets of the same universal design and a determination to find the synthesis between them'.
If biodiversity is to enrich our environment, it must enrich our designs. Planting native species of an appropriate genetic type is one simple way to make a positive contribution to biodiversity. It is not just a one-off contribution but a continuing and increasingly valuable contribution throughout the life of the trees and shrubs planted.
Planting native trees contributes to biodiversity in two basic ways:
- by preserving individual genotypes of rare or important species such as the Caledonian Scot's pine or Arran Service-tree ( Sorbus pseudofennica).
- by forming the basis of new semi-natural habitats that will themselves automatically activate natural processes capable of generating ecological value.
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Birch, as an individual species, may support more invertebrates in Scotland than any other species, but mature oak woodland habitat must be supreme for overall wildlife value. 'Atlantic oakwoods' alongside the A830 are some of the richest habitats in Scotland for lichens, liverworts and mosses. | The oak woodlands alongside the A82 and bonnie banks of Loch Lomond rank amongst Scotland's most important and beautiful landscapes. |
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