Background & challenges
This project covers the whole of the Normandy region (Orne, Manche, Calvados and Seine Maritime), as well as the department of Oise, which borders on Seine Maritime. He aims to plant hedgerows, which are part of the typical landscape of the Normandy region. That is why it is focused on planting 10,000 hedgerow trees, in an area with diverse landscape: hedgerows and semi-hedgerows.
The project is designed on a one-to-one basis with each farmer to ensure overall understanding of the his or her needs and expectations. The species are selected together and take into account adaptation to climate change (e.g., the pedunculate oak is replaced by sessile oak) and diseases prevalent in the region (e.g., ash chalarose is why ash trees are missing).
The hedges are installed on three strata (three different tree heights).
This project is a continuation of the projects carried out since 2020 in the Normandy region. By planting these 10,000 trees it will be possible to tackle various environmental issues, namely:
- preservation of biodiversity: planting these trees will provide sources of shelter and food for a rich and diverse fauna, as well as valuable support for local flora. The planted hedges will contribute towards boosting green areas and thus facilitate the movement of fauna on the territory;
- water catchment: the roots of the hedgerows help capture nutrients and water in the different soils;
- soil protection: hedges, with their windbreak effect, limit soil particles from transferring to crop fields;
- carbon capture: energy wood used by cutting certain tree branches allows the use of a carbon-neutral energy source (through regrowth of the branches following their exploitation). Moreover, according to a study*, 1km of hedging stores the equivalent of 4.58 tonnes of CO2/year, i.e. 4.9kg of CO2 per perennial tree per year.
*Gac et al 2010 according Arrouays and al 2002, Soussana and al 2010.
Project type
Agroforestry
Beneficiaries
The project is carried out with farmers.
Also, all the inhabitants of the region will benefit from the project through restoration of the Norman bocage (mixed woodland and pasture) in this area.
Number of trees
10,000 trees are expected to remain over time
Species planted
More then 15 different species at three different levels (strata)
Partner
Bois Négoce Energie
Sessile oak, field maple, flat maple, basswood, basswood, hornbeam, hazel, blood dogwood, black plum, laburnum, male dogwood, chestnut, black alder, viburnum, European charcoal, medlar, prickly hawthorn, warty birch, borage
Works timeline
- October 2024 to April 2025: Preparation of the soil, laying of mulch, installation of plants, installation of deer and rabbit protection.
- June/July 2025: 1st maintenance
The calendar for the following years:
- December 2025: pruning and replanting
- June/July 2026 and June/July 2027: 2nd and 3rd maintenance
Planting partner
Bois Négoce Energie is an SME specialising in two business activities: the production and trading of wood waste and recycled wood; purchasing, exploiting and marketing standing and roadside timber.
In addition to traditional recovery sectors, BNE offers its forestry and farming customers a wood energy solution. This allows them to recover low-value wood, without other outlets.
In parallel to forestry exploitation, BNE has diversified into valorising timber from hedgerows. The objective is to offer farmers a outlet for hedge wood by exploiting the linear by replanting.
Concerned about the perpetuation of the resource, BNE also offers a planting service for hedging and abandoned agricultural hedges. Similar to the approach for its exploitation sites, within this framework BNE proposes the intervention of a service provider, partner, specialized in the field of intervention.
Budget
The total funds to be raised amount to €102,000. The price for planting a lasting tree is €10.20 and breaks down as follows:
- 93% allocated to the planting project, broken down as follows:
- installation work (preparation, planting, protection): €6.54
- 1st interview: €0.41
- Replanting, 1st pruning and 2nd interview: €1.06
- 3rd interview: €0.16
- A Tree For You (12.90%) collection, monitoring and communication costs: €1.33
- and 7% (€0.70) to support the structural costs of A Tree for You.
The project is co-financed by the farmers concerned to the tune of approximately €24,000 in total and by the Conseils Départementaux to the tune of approximately €32,000. The total budget for the project is therefore €141,000, more then 70% of which is financed by the donations collected by A Tree for You.
