GovWire

About the fund

The government aims to at least treble tree planting rates in England by 2025, and has set legally binding targets to increase tree and woodland cover to 16.5% of total land area by 2050. Meeting these targets domestically will require a corresponding increase in UK production of tree planting material. The Tree Production Innovation Fund (TPIF) is looking to support projects with outputs that will better equip nurseries to supply the trees required for tree planting of all kinds as outlined in the England Trees Action Plan (including woodland creation, planting of trees outside of woods, urban planting, and agro-forestry).

The TPIF has been designed to encourage the development and adoption of new technologies and ways of working that will enhance the quantity and quality of tree planting stock available for planting in England, and to ensure genetically diverse material from a wide range of species and provenances is available. This will ensure that we are able to support the England Trees Action Plan (ETAP) ambitions to plant treescapes that are resilient to stresses including climate change and pests and diseases.

The Tree Production Innovation Fund is currently closed for applications. New to the 2022 offer, applicants?will?be able to submit proposals spanning up to two financial years (ending March 2025). Projects can be valued at up to 200,000 per year and must?address one or more of the following challenges identified through stakeholder engagement as barriers to tree production.

Challenge 1: How can we make better use of available seed and vegetative planting material to maximise the quantity, quality and diversity of trees produced?

A variety of issues can lead to a low conversion rate of seed and vegetative material to trees for planting. Forest Reproductive Materials (FRM) are in limited supply, and it is vital that we maximise the efficient use of the supplies available.

• seed quality encompasses purity, viability and health of the batch. Optimised techniques for tree seed harvesting, processing, screening, and storage all have potential to improve quality and biosecurity of seed made available to nurseries

• even viable seed can be very hard to germinate and successfully establish, especially for the many tree species which have deeply dormant seed. Projects might seek to develop enhanced treatments such as priming which can enhance synchronicity and speed of germination. Seed coatings and pelleting can modify seed shape and size (which can facilitate use of machinery in seed processing and nurseries) and deliver beneficial compounds from nutrients to pesticides

• enhancing the diversity of tree species and provenances available for planting will present specific challenges. Some of the species which are not commonly available in tree nurseries at present may present particular germination, propagation and establishment difficulties which may require the adoption of new techniques and approaches. In particular, we would encourage proposals that demonstrate potential to facilitate or overcome barriers to broadleaf production

• development and management of seed sources are vital for the ongoing supply of tree seeds. Innovation in development of seed orchards and seed stands might include development or application of tree breeding approaches to deliver certain traits to market, or innovation in the development, planting, growth, management or harvesting of seed stands and orchards

Challenge 2: How can we develop growing systems to enhance their efficiency and resilience to change, whilst delivering improved quality and diversity of product? This challenge can include activities to promote biosecurity.

Nurseries face sometimes contradictory challenges to enhance quantity of tree planting stock, whilst also enhancing quality and diversity. This is exacerbated by several other key challenges facing the sector. Exploring alternative novel growing systems has the potential to significantly enhance the quantity, quality and diversity of trees produced whilst better managing key inputs.

• labour supply issues are identified by tree nurseries as limiting to productivity. Automation such as systems for pricking out or grading is evident in other growing sectors but has been a challenge to introduce into the tree production sector, for example because nurseries deal with smaller volumes and a wider diversity of species. The development or adoption of appropriate automation to increase nursery efficiencies and capacity could help to overcome labour uncertainty. In addition, developments would reduce the need for repetitive manual labour and present opportunities for higher quality jobs (i.e. running of planting machinery)

• recently the sector has seen some shift from field grown to cell grown plants and further innovations that widen uptake or accessibility of these techniques, or develop novel transplanting or planting systems, could significantly enhance production. We would be particularly interested to hear from applicants with proposals that explore sustainable alternatives to peat for cell grown tree production. Applicants developing peat free solutions are encouraged to pay due consideration to the scalability of raw materials used

• projects might explore other means to enhance the efficiency of production such as developing new ways to reduce or manage inputs such as water or reduce the risk of climatic impacts. An enhanced application of understanding of soil health, nutrition or the role of mycorrhiza might also improve growth and establishment rates

• as with seed, a move to enhance the diversity of species and provenances produced will present some specific challenges and projects which seek to overcome these would be welcome. Ensuring the traceability of different provenances of stock outside the FRM system is a specific challenge of interest

• biosecurity and the use of best practice standards underpin the production of high-quality tree planting stock. Projects might explore the use of novel technologies or processes that help growers to achieve biosecurity standards and encourage wider uptake of best practice

• applicants might also explore innovative approaches which improve establishment and survival rates of nursery stock at the point of planting in the wider environment. To reach maturity, trees in both forestry and urban contexts are required to withstand pressures including climatic stresses, pests and disease. We would welcome proposals that aim to enhance the resilience of newly planted trees and saplings. For example, projects might explore sustainable alternatives to Hylobius pine weevil control that increase survival rates of newly planted stock

Challenge 3: How can innovative environmentally sustainable weed control solutions be used to reduce reliance on herbicides?

In recent years the sector has begun to adapt nursery practices to reduce use of chemical herbicides. The sector faces a considerable challenge to reduce reliance on such products without turning to alternatives which are equally environmentally unsustainable, whether it be in the context of greenhouse gas emissions, impact on biodiversity or other considerations. Solutions to this challenge are vital in order to maintain the productivity of the sector.

• proposals that use all kinds of innovation to solve this challenge are welcome. These include technology-based solutions such as laser technology as well as nature-based solutions. Projects might explore the efficacy, potential damage to non-target organisms, and cost effectiveness of different approaches as well as innovative solutions

What funding is available

An additional 2 million in capital grant funding will be made available through the TPIF to support innovation projects. Proposals, whether single or multi-year, must have a minimum total cost of 20K to be eligible for funding under the TPIF. Projects may be valued at up to 200K in any given financial year. Eligible costs that may be claimed will include:

• personnel costs related to researchers, and other supporting staff to the extent employed on the project
• costs of equipment for the period of the project. Where such equipment is not used for their full life only the depreciation costs corresponding to the life of the project shall be eligible
• costs of contractual research, knowledge and patents bought or licensed from outside sources at arms-length conditions, as well as costs of consultancy and equivalent services used exclusively for the project
• operating expenses, including costs of materials, supplies and similar products, incurred directly as a result of the project
• travel and subsistence specifically for TPIF related grant activities, carried out in the most economically and sustainable way possible

The following expenditure is ineligible:

• costs or overheads such as rent, and utilities apportioned to staff directly or indirectly employed on the project
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