A new generation of Douglas Fir trees suitable for the UK climate could be in sight, thanks to a groundbreaking new project from the Conifer Breeding Cooperative and Forest Research.
Douglas Fir is native to North America but has been used in British forestry for over 100 years. The UK currently imports much of its seed from the USA or France, and there is a need to develop a strain that is tailored to British conditions.
A Government-funded project, led by the Conifer Breeding Cooperative, has now developed British Douglas fir seed sources suited to the UK and will grow a new generation of Douglas Fir from them.
Douglas Fiar at Artists Wood in Gwydyr Forest Park near Betws-y-Coed; image © Forestry Commission
The project involved the selection of 200 visually superior trees from the best Douglas Fir plantations in Britain, as well as 40 genetically superior trees from long-term experiments managed by Forest Research.
This selection of outstanding Douglas firs will now be used as breeding stock to produce British Douglas fir seed. The chosen trees will be copied by grafting cuttings onto rootstocks, after which the grafted plants will go into seed orchards. In several years, once seeds are available, they will be supplied to forest nurseries to grow the first genetically improved British Douglas fir trees.
“We have selected a new generation of Douglas Fir trees for breeding, based on their adaptation to the British climate and timber properties. This is an important step forward for the resilience of our nation’s trees”
– Richard Whittet, Head of Tree Breeding at Forest Research and Chair of the Conifer Breeding Cooperative
A DNA fingerprint – which shows the genetic make-up of each tree – has also been taken of each tree by Oxford University. This is the first time this technique has been used at such an early stage of a tree breeding programme in the UK. The DNA fingerprint is used as a quality-control tool to track and evaluate the tree’s parentage and enable traceability.
“Douglas Fir is a well known and increasingly popular tree in UK forestry,” comments Stuart Goodall, Chief Executive at Confor. “It can play an important role in efforts to diversify the range of softwood species that we grow to produce high-quality UK timber.”
Douglas Fir at Westonbirt Arboretum; image © Forestry England
“As the climate changes, there is a potential threat of increased pest and disease attacks on trees. Alongside measures to keep pests and diseases out of the UK and vigilance and a rapid response to any outbreak, it’s important that there is also investment in research to improve the productivity of species like Douglas Fir and help us to widen the pool of suitable, wood- producing tree species.”
Read more articles on Douglas Fir and its properties – alongside examples of buildings built with Douglas Fir – by clicking here.
