Country diary: Combing the moor for saplings worth saving

Houndkirk Moor, South Yorkshire: A tree-planting experiment has gone awry - the red deer got themFor the first time in two years we're out planting trees again, part of a volunteer crew working for the Eastern Moors Partnership, currently transforming the moors on the western fringes of Sheffield. When all is done, around 280 hectares of trees will have been planted. Our leader, John Mead, explains that today's area has been planted once already, an experiment that has gone awry.In an attempt to avoid more unsightly plastic tubes, this patch was fenced to keep off sheep and planted with unguarded whips. Unhappily, they haven't prospered. The fence kept sheep out, but not the small herd of red deer that roams these moors. The whips have been munched and we must start again, this time with tubes. Continue reading...