30,000 Native Trees Across 11 Farms

In autumn 2021 Hometree received funding from the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine for a year-long European Innovation Partnership (EIP). Hometree’s EIP is the Illaun Farm-Forest Alliance, and it will foster an alliance between landowners committed to enhancing on-farm biodiversity throughout the Glendine Valley in County Clare.

The EIP uses Hometree’s Illaun site as a hub, which currently hosts a mature spruce plantation. Through a number of innovations we will transform Illaun into a species-rich woodland that is integrated into the wider landscape and community.

In the video below Matt Smith, general manager and co-founder of Hometree, talks about the benefits these woodlands will offer to the farmlands taking part in the Illaun Farm-Forest Alliance project.

“Tree planting has been my big passion for many years, but with this project, finding a strategy to work with farmers on their land has been so exciting. Hometree is a beautiful organisation, but we have a very limited impact if it only operates inside its boundaries. this project, funded by the Department of Agriculture, allowed us to use our skills to benefit the whole landscape; planting these trees and working with these farmers has brought me so much joy.”

- Matt Smith

This project is funded by The Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine and is part of The European Innovative Project.