A former hill sheep farm undergoing a massive transformation into a sprawling commercial woodland, Broadmeadows Estate appears to tick all the boxes in terms of form, function and profitability. So what is the key to its success?
Alec Telfer came to forestry fairly late in life. Born into farming families, he and his wife Jane managed several sites before purchasing Broadmeadows, near Selkirk in the Scottish Borders, in 1992.
Covering a total area of 577.21 hectares, this hill farm was in a rough condition when they took it on, but they worked hard to improve the land and infrastructure, while raising flocks of blackface sheep.
Their children, Kirsty and Euan, did not follow them into the farming life. That, combined with a health scare in 2017, prompted Alec to seek a transformative shift on the land that would create a lasting legacy for his family beyond agriculture.
The sale of their second farm at Peebles provided them with enough money to buy a small parcel of forestry back at Broadmeadows, some of which was ready to be harvested.
“I had always been interested in trees, but that really sparked my interest,” Alec said. “The timber price was right and I could see there was profit to be made in forestry. So I spoke to Jeremy Thompson at Forest Direct and asked him about planting a bit of the farm – a big bit.”
The scheme they devised would see 80.79 hectares of grassland in good, fertile condition remain in agricultural production, while 265ha of hills and poorer upland pastures would be planted with predominantly commercial conifers. The species mix would break down into 54% Sitka spruce, with 8% Scots pine, 6% Douglas fir, 6% Norway spruce, 10% native broadleaves and 8% low-density native broadleaves, with 8% of open ground.
“We planned it in such a way that it wasn’t just a blanket of Sitka,” said Alec. “I needed to have a big bit of Sitka, because it needs to have a commercial future.
“It’s all right having some of these hardwoods for the benefit of the landscape, but that doesn’t cut it when it comes to revenue. I wanted to leave a legacy for my family.”
The first step in developing the Broadmeadows scheme was a series of extensive surveys covering biodiversity, heritage, landscape, soils and tree selection. The findings were used to develop an initial design which was shared with the local community whose feedback was incorporated into the scheme.
According to Jeremy of Forest Direct, this was a process which threw a couple of obstacles in their way.
“Black grouse was a big issue,” he said. “We had a very difficult meeting with Scottish Forestry’s adviser, where he wanted the top half of the scheme to be removed. Alec quite rightly was not willing to contemplate doing that. He put his foot down, insisting we would do it all or none of it. It was a very brave move to make, but he stuck to his guns and we got approval.
“That was a major hurdle that could have scuppered the whole thing. And since then we’ve seen black grouse quite regularly. So the interesting thing is, in the early stages of woodland creation, the habitat is actually ideal for black grouse.”
Borders Forestry, run by Chris Reid, was hired to plant 567,000 saplings supplied by Maelor Nurseries, completing the job by April 2019, in just one planting season.
“It was a huge effort put in by about 20 tree planters,” said Jeremy. “What is an issue on all woodland creation sites, particularly on lower, more fertile ground, is the amount of grass. So that did require chemical weeding."
Alec estimated that around 40,000 trees have had to be replaced since that initial planting – a fairly small percentage and especially impressive considering the site has no deer fencing.
Instead, Alec hired a retired Forestry Commission ranger to control the roe deer and brown hare populations. Given the site is bordered by commercial forestry to the north, west and south, this could have proved a huge problem. But Alec said good optics and a rifle had made all the difference.
Five years on, it’s clear the strategy has worked and the trees are thriving. Some of the Douglas fir looks especially impressive, comparable to what one might expect to see in the south of England. The Sitka took longer to get going, which Jeremy put down to it being veg prop (vegetatively propagated from cuttings).
“The idea behind it is that it should accelerate the woodland creation process,” he said. “You don’t have to grow a tree until it produces cones and seeds before planting. You can bypass all that.
“In practice, because the vascular systems aren’t fully developed, they don’t put a lot of growth on for the first two or three years, which isn’t particularly beneficial if you’ve got weedy sites and deer and hare running around.
“Not only do they not grow very quickly, but if they do get browsed, it takes them longer to recover and push up new shoots. We did a bit of fertiliser treatment to get the trees to put on a bit more growth. Once they did, they started to shade out the heather.”
Or, as Alec puts it: “It took them a while to realise they were supposed to be trees and not just branches. But once they get going, they really get going.”
By taking sheep off the hill (those grazing on the fields are the Telfers’ neighbours, who rent the land), natural regeneration of willow, bilberry and heather are enhancing the habitat for wildlife, including not only black grouse but red grouse, curlew, snipe and golden plover. The new planting has also improved the flow of surface water and created major flood mitigation benefits.
Alec is currently looking into adding some self-catering cabins on the estate – a business opportunity his daughter and son-in-law are very enthusiastic about, finding it much more appealing than sheep farming.
The idea is to sculpt Broadmeadows Estate into a tranquil, scenic haven in which visitors can experience all the serene beauty of the Scottish countryside – and harvesting operations won’t change that.
“With its improved growth rate, the Sitka will be ready in 30 years as opposed to 45 or 50,” said Alec.
“That’s a game-changer. What you do is take out a 20-acre block every year or so and keep going around, replanting, and by the time you’ve finished the Sitka, the Norway’s ready to go. Once it’s done, the Douglas is ready. And by the time the Douglas is done, the Sitka’s ready again.
“It’s a fantastic rotation and means when you start harvesting, it’s not devastation of the whole place.
“Trees remain constant in the landscape. That’s important. You want to make money from the timber, but you also want something nice to look at.”
Forest Direct regards Broadmeadows Estate as one of its premier schemes and a fine example for others to study.
“For a commercial woodland we’ve done everything in a very sensitive manner and actually diversified the species,” said Jeremy. “We haven’t just relied on Sitka spruce. It’s a very balanced project. Only a third of the trees will be harvested in that initial 55-year period. And all the broadleaves are permanent. We consider them nature reserves. We have some open areas which have some interesting flowers with butterflies and various ant hills, which we’ve protected.”
It’s shaping up to be an incredible legacy to leave behind for future generations. And Alec has enjoyed making the transition from farmer to forester.
“Planting trees is not for everybody,” he said. “It suits me because I’m keen on trees. I have a different view. I really didn’t want the fields planted, because there’s hundreds of years of work gone into them, but the hill ground was clearly ideal.
“When you stop and think what the return is off that land from sheep and what it will be worth for timber, it’s a no-brainer. I know there’s a delay before you get money, but I’m sure it will be worth it in the end. They reckon timber prices will rocket in the next 30 or 40 years. Demand will go through the roof and supply is going to hit a crisis point.
“At the same time, it’s not easy trying to diversify on a farm. There’s a limit to what you can do with the land and planning is a big issue. I can understand why people object to the planting of blanket Sitka, because it doesn’t look great. Whereas I think I’ve got enough diversity to break it up.
“What we do is not agroforestry. We don’t let sheep in to graze among the trees. I don’t think that’s compatible with commercial forestry. And I hate rewilding. The key, to me is that it has to have commercial worth. You certainly can’t make farmers do anything – I’m an expert at digging my heels in and saying ‘no way’ – but you can provide funding to an extent that makes it financially attractive.
“My advice to others would be to follow the money. You have to be sensible about life. It’s all right having this dreamy idea that farming is going to stay the way it is, but if you’re flexible enough and see an opportunity, then take it. I saw an opportunity and thought it was right for me. And I really think we’ve created something special.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here