Policy recommendations for increasing ecosystem services from trees in agricultural landscapes

A wide range of benefits for agriculture and farmers are provided by trees. They have the potential to increase economic returns and support agricultural resilience. Planting more trees on farms can address multiple policy goals, including the UK’s aim to become carbon neutral by 2050 and the overhaul of the UK agricultural policies to a better, fairer and sustainable farming system.
This policy brief summarises the current evidence base around tree planting on agricultural land, outlining the positive and negative impacts different tree-planting interventions can have for different stakeholders. Benefit of tree-planting schemes will depend on the planting scheme, agricultural system, scale of implementation and landscape context. To increase the uptake and positive environmental impact of tree planting on agricultural land in the UK, the following challenges should be addressed:
• Support farmer decision making
• Increase empirical evidence
• Provide concrete funding opportunities through the Environmental Land Management Scheme