Thursday, 07 March 2019
Image: Alvan Nee / Unsplash Although last week's early flash of warm weather may have blown away in the March winds for now, Spring is most definitely in the air! Scotland’s beautifully rugged great outdoors is just waiting to be explored. Whether you're after a woodland walk with a furry friend, or a longer weekend stroll with the whole family, we've picked ten spots per...
Tuesday, 12 February 2019
Photo: Caroline Veronez / Unsplash Love it or hate it, Valentine’s Day is just around the corner… We reckon the forest is one of the romantic places to woo a loved one this February 14th, so we’ve put together a guide on the best places to take a dreamy stroll, plan a woodland wedding or even pop that all-important question!
Monday, 11 February 2019
Photo: Sean Stratton / Unsplash An alarming new study, discussed in The Guardian today, has found that more than 40% of the world's insect populations are now in decline. Coverage of environmental issues tends to focus on more camera-friendly species, but insects are just as vital to our planet's support systems — perhaps even more so. With the total mass of i...
Monday, 04 February 2019
Photo: Malte Schmidt / Unsplash On one of last week’s episodes of BBC Winterwatch, the team spent some time discussing mental health issues, and how spending time in the outdoors, and re-engaging with the world of plants, animals and trees can help people restore a bit of balance to their inner lives. The team spoke to author Joe Harkness about his book, Bird Therapy, and how he develop...
Wednesday, 30 January 2019
Tucked away in the hills of Argyll, just a few miles from Lohgilphead, are the world-famous prehistoric ‘cup and ring’ marks of Achnabreac. These mysterious patterns were carved into rocks throughout Scotland, Ireland, England and Wales and around Europe, in Greece, Italy, and as far north as Scandinavia... Read on to find out more about our new short story competition for ages 10 and up...
Thursday, 24 January 2019
If you’ve been taking part in RSPB’s 2019 Big Garden Bird Watch (26-28 January), you might already have seen Part 1 of our quick reference guide to some of Scotland’s best-loved birds, commonly found in our gardens. We hope you enjoyed Bird Bingo Round 1 - it's a quick, fun, easy game for the whole family to enjoy! Here in Part 2, we’ll give you another six bird species to spo...
Thursday, 24 January 2019
Photo: Edi Libedinsky on Unsplash Just in time for RSPB’s 2019 Big Garden Bird Watch (26-28 January), we’ve pooled our ornithological knowledge and designed a quick reference guide to some of Scotland’s best-loved birds! It’s a fun game anyone can join in with - and in this blog post, we’ll give you a few extra facts about these bird species. Grab some binoculars, get the bird feeders...
Wednesday, 05 December 2018
Image by Marcus Spiske via Unsplash. As the year draws to a close, you might think outdoor activities are off the table, but don’t be too hasty! Leaf pressing is a brilliant activity for autumn and early winter. Get out and capture the quiet beauty of the trees and plants in nature.
Wednesday, 05 December 2018
Forest Enterprise Scotland has a broad and valued range of suppliers, many of which are small to medium enterprises and micro businesses. We are also very proud of our support for rural economies through our work in rural and often remote parts of Scotland. To extend our support for our suppliers we have engaged with a public sector programme called the Supplier Development Programme. The Suppli...
Wednesday, 14 November 2018
We continue to seek to build on bumper visitor numbers National Forest Estate (NFE) through new opportunities and investments. 10.7 million visits were made to the in 2017 – an increase of 18% since 2013 (9.1million). The NFE boasts over 1,200km of walking tracks, 130 cycle routes, wildlife viewing spots and 8 visitor centres making it an ideal place to come for a family day out or to take part...
Monday, 29 October 2018
New land management plan guidance aims to provide more structured Land Management Plans. Plans now include upfront summaries of what the plan will achieve and a careful record of the rationale behind the decisions that Forest Enterprise Scotland (FES) makes to manage the land to meet a wide range of objectives. Each plan now includes a list of the challenges that need to be tackled in the first te...
Tuesday, 09 October 2018
150 sacks of Sitka spruce cones and 72 sacks of Alaskan Lodgepole pine cones have been collected by hand to help provide seeds to sow as trees on the National Forest Estate.
Wednesday, 26 September 2018
A ‘secret’ population of butterflies has been found in the Trossachs. The Pearl-bordered Fritillary butterfly, which is now very rare in England and Wales, but more widely found in the north of Scotland, was thought to be locally extinct in the Trossachs.
Friday, 14 September 2018
The broch of Caisteal Grugaig overlooks Loch Alsh at Totaig. It was built around 2,000 years ago, part of an Iron Age settlement tradition of small defended homesteads found all along the Atlantic coast of Scotland. The word broch comes from the Norse ‘borg’, meaning fort. But although they protected their occupants, they also demonstrated land ownership and tenure. Brochs were built in places...