Teagasc has reported a strong demand for its nationwide forestry clinics, with broad appeal for planting from both farmers and non-farmers.

There have been concerns in certain parts of Ireland, particularly Leitrim, that foreign investors, or so-called vulture funds, could be buying marginal land to plant trees and avail of tax-free payments.

Family connection

However, Teagasc forestry adviser Noel Kennedy said that non-farmers looking to buy land usually had a family connection to it.

“Teagasc don’t deal with vulture fund enquiries,” Kennedy told the Irish Farmers Journal.

“The non-farmers that come into us are people who quite commonly inherited land and are looking for an alternative to renting the land.”

He added that there also seemed to be an interest in planting from younger farmers under 40 who were farming part-time.

He said that farmers were typically looking to plant between six and seven hectares, usually on outfarms to make them more commercially viable.

Consultations

Teagasc carried out 350 consultations nationwide, with Noel himself carrying out 40 consultations in Roscommon, Mayo and Galway.

He explained that the marginal acidic nature of that land meant that it was mainly only suitable for conifer planting.

However, he added that Teagasc forestry advisers had seen an interest in planting across all counties, with other counties more suitable to native woodland.

He also pointed out that any forestry plantation could now only be 70% conifer, with a remaining 15% set aside for broadleaf and another 15% set aside for biodiversity measures.