British-grown Douglas fir seed moves step closer to reality

Native to North America, the species has been used in British forestry for over 100 years, with demand rising rapidly as some previously favoured conifer species become increasingly vulnerable to pests and diseases. But with much of the seed currently imported from the USA or France, there have been incomplete attempts to develop British Douglas fir seed sources for decades. 

Now, a new project appears to finally have cracked it. 

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Led by the Conifer Breeding Cooperative, the scheme 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 to produce British Douglas fir seed.

Douglas fir Bedgebury National Pinetum and Forest (Image: Forest Research)

The chosen trees will be copied by grafting cuttings onto rootstocks, after 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.  

Richard Whittet, head of tree breeding at Forest Research and chair of the Conifer Breeding Cooperative, said:  “We have selected a new generation of Douglas fir trees for breeding, based on their adaptation to the British climate and timber properties which is an important step forward for the resilience of our nation’s trees.  

Douglas fir graftings at Alice Holt Forest (Image: Forest Research)

“This achievement is the result of decades of work by Forest Research and our domestic and international partners."

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 Great Britain.

The DNA fingerprint is used as a quality-control tool to track and evaluate the tree’s parentage and enable traceability. This important data will help advance the project.  

Sir William Worsley, chair of the Forestry Commission, said: “We are facing a changing climate and biodiversity decline, with trees playing a significant role in mitigating some of the worst impacts. 

“We rely too heavily on timber imports in the UK and if we are to strengthen our own domestic supply then this type of science will play a huge role in the future. 

Douglas fir is increasingly imported in British timber (Image: FJ/stock)

“Therefore, there has never been a more crucial time to invest in domestic tree-planting”. 

Douglas fir is a desirable timber-producing tree for Britain and this step forward to develop a resilient British population will ensure better yield for the UK's domestic timber industry. Doug fir is increasingly a species of choice, given the threat faced by many varieties of spruce, Western hemlock and larch. 

Fast-growing conifers such as this sequester carbon more quickly than slower growing species. 

Using timber in construction, in place of other non-renewable materials, is one of the best ways to reduce emissions from buildings.

It also ensures that carbon is locked up long-term. 

The project partners involved are Conifer Breeding Coop, University of Oxford, and Forestart and it has been funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.