Did you know that Ireland has one of the lowest levels of tree cover in the whole of Europe? Around 10% of our landmass is covered in trees, and roughly one per cent of that is made up of native woodlands - but things are changing!
On this episode of Ecolution, the climate podcast from RTÉ KIDS, we meet the gang from Hometree - a nature restoration charity working to restore resilient habitats.
We get our hands dirty with Cia McGovern and Finnian Flood, as they lead a group from Mud Island Community Garden in Dublin planting native hedgerows.
Ecolution is available on RTÉ or wherever you get your podcasts - press play up top to listen now!
It's easy to assume that, as a small island on the edge of Europe, our impact on the global climate crisis might also be small. In truth, the opposite is often the case. Our environment has changed dramatically over time, and much of what we see today is very different from the rich, biodiverse landscape that once existed here.
One of the most striking examples is our tree cover. Ireland has less than 10% forest coverage - the lowest in Europe - and only a tiny fraction of that is made up of native or ancient woodland. These native ecosystems are vital; they support far more plant and animal life than fast-growing non-native plantations, which are often planted for commercial purposes.
So how did we get here? Over thousands of years, forests were cleared for farming, shipbuilding, and development. In their place came faster-growing species like Sitka spruce - economically valuable, but far less beneficial for biodiversity. While these forests may look green, they often lack the complexity needed to support thriving wildlife.
The good news is that change is happening. Organisations like Hometree are working with communities and farmers to restore Ireland’s native woodlands and plant hedgerows - natural habitats that can stretch for hundreds of thousands of kilometres across the country.
Finnian says: "There is 760,000km of hedgerow in this country. That's enough to reach to the moon and back. So it's an incredibly important source of our biodiversity and if it's not protected, it's not going to exist. With more and more mechanized farming, they're not being looked after.
"Hedgerows are a managed ecosystem, they don't exist on their own, so they need farmers to manage them and it's happening less and less. So it's incredibly important that community groups like this plant, learn about and manage their own hedgerows."
And there’s a role for everyone. Whether it’s volunteering with local groups, supporting reforestation projects, or creating small wildlife-friendly spaces at home or school, individual action adds up.
And we say this in action on a lovely sunny day at Mud Island as the Hometree crew led a team of volunteers planting a native hedgerow from saplings, with children and adults all chipping in.
Ireland’s landscape didn’t change overnight - and it won’t recover overnight either. But with collective effort, the story of our forests is still being written. And in fairness, they have already made a comeback from a very low base. Let's keep it going!
To learn more about how reforestation could shape Ireland’s future, listen to the show. Visit Hometree here.
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