Volunteers have helped plant a further 800 trees at Wistman’s Wood National Nature Reserve on Dartmoor, as restoration work continues to expand one of the South West’s rare temperate rainforests. The planting took place last week as part of a long-term effort to strengthen this globally unique woodland and extend its reach across the West Dart Valley.
The recent tree-planting builds on the 450 saplings established at the site in March 2025. Volunteers from partner organisations including Natural England, Moor Trees and the Woodland Trust worked with the Duchy of Cornwall to embed the new saplings within protective fenced plots, boosting their chances of survival and helping create resilient new woodland.
The saplings were grown from locally gathered acorns and rowan seeds collected at Wistman’s Wood and nurtured at Moor Trees’ Community Tree Nursery in Dartington, South Devon. This local provenance approach ensures that the added trees share the genetic traits of the existing rainforest and are well adapted to the demanding upland conditions of Dartmoor.
Wistman’s Wood is a designated National Nature Reserve, Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and Special Area of Conservation (SAC), reflecting its ecological importance. Temperate rainforests are globally rare habitats, with around 90 per cent lost since the Bronze Age and only around 8 per cent remaining in Devon and Cornwall, making this restoration work vital to their long-term survival.
Emma Magee, Head of Communities and Nature on Dartmoor at the Duchy of Cornwall, said the continued planting reflects an ongoing commitment to building nature-rich landscapes and enhancing the resilience of Dartmoor’s environment. The work supports the Duchy’s Dartmoor Landscape Vision, a twenty-year plan to guide environmental stewardship across the region.
Volunteers and conservation partners say that this steady, collaborative restoration effort shows what can be achieved when communities, landowners and nature organisations work together to protect and expand precious native woodland for future generations.
