Forestry & Arboriculture

Forests and woodlands are an important renewable resource for timber, amenity and recreation, tourism and biodiversity.

Trees in a variety of locations help combat climate change as well as being widely recognised as providing benefits for health and wellness. Skilled people are needed to work in a range of jobs, to help maintain, manage, and utilise forests, woodlands and trees in both rural and urban settings.

Forestry is defined as the science and practice of all tree management and includes:

• Establishment and maintenance of new and regenerated woodlands
• Harvesting and Thinning
• Arboriculture and Urban forestry
• Environmental and amenity woodland management and maintenance
• Education and training in all these fields

Forestry focuses on the management of forests and woodland, from planting, maintenance through to thinning and final harvesting.

Arboriculture centres on the cultivation, management and care for individual trees, or groups of trees, with the primary aim of maintaining them for amenity purposes.

SRUC Barony, Dumfries has excellent facilities and equipment ranging from the Scottish Forest Industry Technology Centre (SFITC), tree nursery and arboretum with access to specialist machinery like our sawmill, simulators, and technology such as drones and decay detection equipment.

We use our own 25 hectares of forest and estate woodlands as well as our long-established relationship with local landowners for a range of activities from tree felling to forest surveying.

These facilities are used to enable a wide range of forestry and arboriculture courses, many of which are run in partnership with organisations such as John Deere Forestry, Ponsse, Forest and Land Scotland and a range of other local businesses.

SRUC Forestry and Arboriculture graduates can expect a great deal of employment opportunities with a well-rounded education in these respective areas.