Anna Dauksta reports on how two very different woodland creation projects offered Royal Forestry Society members unique insights into the evolving role of productive trees in upland Wales.
On Friday 4th July, members of the Royal Forestry Society (RFS) gathered in Carmarthenshire for a full-day visit exploring two very different but equally inspiring woodland creation projects.
The morning took us to Banc Woodland, a large-scale productive forestry site managed by Tilhill. Planted in 2023, the 90-hectare site is now entering its fourth growing season, with French-provenance Douglas fir making up part of the species mix. Although recent storms challenged some of the younger trees, site managers have responded quickly with contractors brought in to heel them back in.
Discussions at Banc focused on species selection, drainage, slope orientation, and the realities of scaling up planting in a tight contracting market. West-facing slopes showed stronger Douglas fir performance, but there was some reflection that Norway spruce might have coped better in areas with poor drainage. As one attendee noted, slower-growing trees might ultimately be the more resilient.
Infrastructure was also a key theme: a substantial forest road was put in to facilitate oak thinning and public access—an important part of the site’s long-term vision. With the site currently up for sale on the London stock market, participants reflected on how investor-led woodland creation can intersect with biodiversity goals and rural value creation.
After a quick lunch, the group headed to Brynllywelyn Farm, hosted by landowner Tim Joynson, whose frank and engaging storytelling grounded the afternoon’s discussions in lived experience.
Tim’s journey—from farming 1,000 sheep and 50 Welsh Black cattle to a mixed system that now includes just 60 sheep, horses, and a growing woodland enterprise—showed the adaptability of upland farms when supported by grants, creativity, and machinery know-how. A low-impact Alpine tractor, a self-built mounder, and home-adapted trailers were among the innovations helping Tim manage his woodland in cost-effective and environmentally sensitive ways.
He’s also making forestry work for his animals: from brash chipping used as horse bedding (great for their hocks) to the shelterbelts offering windbreaks, biodiversity, and even potential disease buffers between farms. Tim’s reflections on the bracken challenge grant of the 1990s and his ideas for future biomass markets (why not grow timber for Drax here in Wales?) sparked lively conversation.
The group walked through his 13-hectare plantation, discussed mixed conifer performance, storm damage, and species choices for parkland and agroforestry systems. A highlight was seeing how forestry can be fully integrated into the farm—not as an add-on, but as a system of benefits across carbon, shelter, timber, and landscape resilience.
Tim, his wife, and their children all see the trees as a positive and practical diversification of their farm business—adding long-term value in both environmental and economic terms.
The day closed with a powerful reminder that the future of Welsh forestry will be shaped as much by ingenuity and relationships as by grants and planting targets. As Tim put it, “Where’s the cost? Is it to the pocket—or to the planet?”
