Coille Ruigh na Cuileige is a 50 hectare exclosure which was the first significant project we carried out with Forest
Enterprise in Glen Affric. The fence was erected in 1990 to exclude grazing
red deer. The site had a large number of seedlings, meaning that no planting was required. Since the
fence was completed, no further management has been carried out to assist the return of the trees. The area has been left to allow
natural regeneration to run its course. It is the only exclosure on Forest Enterprise land in Glen Affric where natural regeneration
is the sole method of forest recovery.
Our original Coille Ruigh results page focuses on the regeneration
of the champion pine in Coille Ruigh. In another part of the Coille Ruigh na Cuileige exclosure, three
standing dead Scots pine snags provide a potent symbol for the historic decline of the forest, and the new generation of trees that the
fence is enabling to grow there.
 |
The dead pines photographed at the time the Coille
Ruigh fence was put up in 1990. Because of the
grazing pressure from red deer, no young trees
were able to grow. |
 |
By September 2000, young Scots pines and birches are visible, regenerating
naturally around the skeletons of the dead trees. |
 |
By September 2007, after 17 years of protection, the young trees are well-established and are bringing a whole new generation of life to the area. |
Pages about Coille Ruigh on this site
Top of page
Return to Practical Results of our Work
