Peter Rose

Peter’s farm forest is located near the town of Borris in south Carlow. It is located within a freshwater pearl mussel catchment area. The forest is part of a 110-ha farm managed for suckler cow farming and commercial farm forestry. Almost half of the total farm area has been planted under forestry. The forest is managed in partnership with forester Manus Crowley. It is divided into forest blocks of various ages and with a wide species diversity.

Peter said, "I planted mixed species forestry on the poorest land and retained the good land into farming. The forest integrated well with farming and has provided a steady income, improved wildlife and shelter to the farm."

The forest is undergoing transformation thinning towards a Continuous Cover system. "I decided to opt for CCF at it offers continual and steady production potential with great wildlife benefits and permanent shelter to enhance the farm," Peter said.

Some sections are now approaching third thinning. He commented, "We are still at an early transformation stage. However I am pleased with the thinning’s returns and the way the forest is evolving from uniform to a more diverse structure due to selective thinning." Peter has applied under the new CCF scheme for a 10-ha block and is currently considering new agroforestry options to complement further his suckler farm.