Planting trees at Chester Zoo
Flintshire Woodlands has been involved in a woodland creation project at Chester Zoo, one of the UK's most popular paid-for tourist attractions.
The team planted 3,808 trees - including 18 different species - on the Chester Zoo Estate.
Flintshire Woodlands - the trading arm of Scottish Woodlands Ltd in Wales and western England - was involved in ground preparation and planting. The ground prep involved creating 1600 inverted mounds per hectare to create a weed-free planting site.
Adam Stirling, a Forest Manager with Flintshire Woodlands, based in Chirk, North Wales, said: "We surveyed and marked out the planting areas using a compact tractor and flail mower to create 2.5m width mowed lines to help the establishment of inverted mounding on the ground."
"The result of this pre-mounding operation created a criss-cross effect in the planting areas to establish the placement of mounds. This method has worked very well, ensuring precise mound locations and accurate stocking density."
A total of 18 broadleaf species (plus shrubs) - including Downy Birch, Wild Cherry, Rowan and Hazel - were planted on the site, protected with Tubex nature guards and bio-mulch mats, held in place with bamboo pegs.
Mr Stirling added: "It's been great to work with such an iconic name in the UK wildlife conservation and tourist industry."
Chester Zoo was opened in 1931 and attracted almost 2 million visitors in 2024 - the third most-visited paid-for attraction in the UK, behind only the Tower of London and Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, London.
The zoo itself covers 51 hectares (130 acres), while the wider estate is approximately 160 hectares (400 acres).
In 2024, it was named as the best zoo in the UK and as also the third best in the world by TripAdvisor.
