Carr Head Farm: complex design in action

Carr Head Farm is a small 25 acre holding near Hathersage. Most of the land is grassland, rented out and grazed by cattle/sheep, but has a two acre vineyard that was established in 2014.

The owners want to leave the land in a better condition than it came to them in, so got in touch with the Farm Advice team at the National Park Authority. A survey revealed areas of species-rich and species-poor grassland, so presented the opportunity to create wood pasture on 70% of the land, as well as further improve the biodiversity value of the parts which already had lots of flowers and herbs.

The design was based on the National Forest guidelines of 6-25 trees per hectare and tried to balance space for trees to mature, scrub and potential natural colonisation and regeneration with making the scheme cost-effective. For a small site, there were lots of other considerations for the owners and Adviser to contend with, including overhead cables, gas pipes, archaeology, rights of way and the landscape setting.

Picture: Planting design at Carr Head Farm, including water soughs in blue, overhead power line in yellow, underground BT cable in red and high pressure gas pipes in purple, footpaths in black.

After careful consideration, 143 trees made up of 12 different species, including two species of oak, have been planted, funded by Farming in Protected Landscapes. It is hoped that 123 will survive, meaning there will be around 16 trees per hectare. It is hoped birch will naturally colonise from close by.