Riverside Planting in Scotland

Riverside Planting to Cool Waters

From 2021 to 2023 you helped fund the planting of a total of 13,030 riverside, or riparian, trees along the Carron & Oykel rivers in the Kyle of Sutherland in Scotland. A mix of alder, downy birch, willows, hazel, bird cherry, elm & aspen were planted by our partners at the Kyle of Sutherland Fisheries Trust and Mossy Earth. Now established they are providing nutrients & shade for the many species, including Atlantic salmon & white tailed eagles, that live there.

THE NEED FOR COOL WATERS

Rivers need sunlight to allow aquatic plants & algae to photosynthesise. Too much heat warms the water however, reducing oxygen levels and making it difficult for fish, like salmon and trout, to survive. Centuries of tree felling and overgrazing has meant that Scotland’s riverbanks now lack trees altogether. Hotter, drier summers are also taking their toll.

BRINGING BACK SHADE

The solution is to get those riparian zone trees back in the ground. Their canopies provide the shade needed to cool waters; leaf litter feeds insects, fungi & bacteria; branches fall into the water creating shelter for fish & nesting spots for birds; tree roots stabillise the banks preventing soil erosion; and the trees act as highways for wildlife, giving animals food, shelter and safe pathways across open land.

13,030 CAP funded Trees were planted between 2021 - 2023

Riparian Planting © Mossy Earth

13,030 trees planted

Our trees were planted along the Carron & Oykel rivers in the Kyle of Sutherland in the Highlands in Scotland.

Updates from the Field

In December 2025, the CAP Team travelled to meet our expert planting partners at the Kyle of Sutherland Rivers Trust & Mossy Earth to check in on how the trees were doing. On a beautiful crisp day we were able to walk the tree lined rivers and marvel and the potential woodland that will one day stand there. One by one the trees are popping over the tops of their guards and it is extremely encouraging to see.