Trees and woodlands

Trees and woodlands make a significant contribution to the landscape character, scenic quality and local distinctiveness of the Dales landscape. They provide many benefits from addressing climate change and enhancing wildlife habitat, to improving water quality and farm viability, aiding natural flood management, and in some areas giving people better access to nature.

Just over 4% of the Yorkshire Dales National Park is woodland. This is considered low and is mainly due to historical land use and the fact that over 95% of the National Park is in private ownership. Here in the Dales you can find a wide range of woodland types, such as upland ash woodland, wet woodland, riparian and gill woodland, commercial plantations, historic beech and sycamore plantations, as well as areas of scrub and wood pasture. Hedgerows also play an important role in habitat connectivity, and our field trees have great ecological and landscape importance.

We have various programmes of work aimed at improving and expanding tree and woodland cover, driven by the Dales Woodland Strategy

New woodland creation

We are working with partners to expand woodland habitat and ensure it establishes well. A number of new collaborations means we now have access to a broader range of funding for new woodland.

Woodland management

Encouraging the positive management of existing woodlands is an important part of our work and we work closely with woodland owners and managers to put existing sites into management plans.

Protected trees

The Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority is responsible for protecting valuable trees within the National Park. We have arboricultural specialists who can advise on works to protected trees. Everything you need to know, from finding out if a tree is protected to the process and forms you will need to submit to carry out works to a protected tree.

Hedgerows and field trees

Hedgerows and field trees are a distinctive landscape feature in some areas of the National Park.

Tree health and disease

Find out about tree pests and diseases affecting our trees in the national park here.

Trees and planning

Our Trees and Planning section provides guidance on how to consider trees in development proposals  

Contact us

If you have any other queries or would like to speak to someone, please contact a member of the Trees and Woodlands team.