Forestry Drone Seeding:Remote Reforestation in Scotland

Drone reforestation in Scotland – using forestry drones for aerial tree planting – is emerging as a game-changing method for land restoration. By deploying unmanned aerial vehicles, native tree seeds can be dispersed across remote hillsides and hard-to-reach areas far more efficiently than traditional planting crews. This innovative technique offers estate owners, land managers, and conservation organisations a powerful new tool for remote rewilding and large-scale land restoration in Scotland, especially on challenging terrain that was previously impractical to reforest.

Talla Reservoir

Reforesting Challenging Terrain with Drones

One of the biggest advantages of forestry drone seeding is the ability to reforest inaccessible uplands, steep slopes, and ecologically sensitive sites. In Scotland’s rugged landscapes, many potential woodland sites are difficult or dangerous for planters to reach. Drones eliminate this problem by air-dropping seeds on slopes and uplands that humans can’t safely traverse. For example, on a landslide-prone hillside above the A83 road, drones scattered 20 million birch seeds over 12 ha in a matter of hours – a task that would have taken weeks by hand. Even if only 1% of those seeds take root, that’s about 200,000 new trees growing on a stabilised slope, binding the soil and reducing erosion. In such unstable areas, planting from the air not only speeds up reforestation but also keeps workers out of harm’s way, afforesting the land from a safe distance.

Equally important, drone seeding is gentle on the environment. Aerial seeding avoids heavy machinery and minimizes ground disturbance, making it ideal for fragile habitats like peatlands or steep catchments. Traditional planting methods often require digging and machinery that can disrupt sensitive soils, whereas drones mimic natural seed dispersal by dropping pelletized seeds from above. The seeds settle into the terrain with minimal impact, allowing woodlands to establish in suitable spots without compacting the soil or disturbing existing vegetation. This low-impact approach is especially valuable in ecologically sensitive restoration sites, ensuring that reforestation enhances biodiversity without unintended harm.

Scottish Borders Woodland Restoration: Talla Reservoir Project (The project was conducted by AutoSpray Systems & Scottish Water. Sky-Pin Drones conducted the flights on the 2nd day of seeding with AutoSpray Systems Ltd and under their CAA approval as part of their contractor network).

Always take the best route up

A practical real-world example of drone reforestation is the Talla Reservoir project in the Scottish Borders, a pioneering woodland restoration initiative. In late 2025, heavy-lift drones were deployed around Talla Reservoir to sow over 2 million native tree seeds across 20 ha of inaccessible upland slopes. This effort – part of a larger 80 ha Scottish Borders woodland restoration scheme – marked the UK’s first drone-sown upland native woodland, with drones operating beyond visual line-of-sight to reach remote terrain. The seeded mix included species like aspen, rowan, oak, alder, and birch, aiming to enrich high catchment slopes with native broadleaf trees. The goal is to stabilise soils and reduce runoff into the reservoir, protecting water quality and mitigating flood risk during increasingly frequent heavy rains.

Importantly, the Talla drone seeding project is designed to complement broader rewilding efforts. It links with nearby wildland areas (such as the Borders Forest Trust’s Talla & Gameshope estate) to create wildlife corridors and expand woodland habitat, yielding significant biodiversity benefits. Early phases of the project have already opened up steep, previously unplantable slopes to new woodland – something that would have been “extremely difficult and time consuming” using manual planting methods. The success of the Talla Reservoir project demonstrates how drone reforestation in Scotland can accelerate woodland creation in difficult locales, setting a model for other estates and water catchment areas.

Key Benefits of Drone-Based Forestry Seeding

• Rapid, Scalable Reforestation: High-capacity drones can cover large areas quickly, seeding tens of hectares in days instead of months. (In one trial, 12 ha were seeded within hours by drone.) This speed and scale make it feasible to reforest vast upland areas and slopes efficiently.

• Access to Remote & Steep Areas: Drones reach terrain that people and machines cannot, from steep mountain sides to boggy moors. By flying seed payloads over inaccessible uplands and hazard zones, drones enable tree planting on land that was previously out of reach, all without risking worker safety.

• Minimal Environmental Disturbance: Aerial seeding causes far less soil disturbance than manual planting with heavy equipment. Seeds are delivered directly to the ground with precision, avoiding the soil compaction or habitat damage that tractors and hand-planting can cause. This makes drone seeding ideal for ecologically sensitive areas where a light touch is needed.

• Cost-Effective & Efficient: Direct seeding by drone can be done at a fraction of the cost of traditional sapling planting. With fewer labour hours and no need for extensive ground prep, landowners can achieve reforestation on a tight budget. Recent results in the West Highlands found drone seeding to be highly viable – yielding a 2.7% seedling germination rate (versus 1% expected) and proving cheaper than anticipated.

• Natural Regeneration & Resilience: Drone seeding replicates natural regeneration by allowing seeds to grow where conditions are right. The resulting woodlands tend to be diverse and well-adapted to the site, as pioneer species establish themselves and pave the way for long-term forest development. This creates resilient woodlands and boosts biodiversity, from native trees to the wildlife that will return as the forest grows

Seedingnatural woodland - Rowan & Birch seeds

Towards Sustainable Land Restoration in Scotland

Forestry drone seeding is transforming land restoration in Scotland, offering a professional, innovative approach to rewilding even the hardest-to-reach places. From erosion-prone Highland slopes to expansive Border estates, drone reforestation provides a fast, safe, and eco-friendly solution for planting trees at scale. It aligns with Scotland’s climate and conservation goals – increasing woodland cover, capturing carbon, improving watershed health, and creating new habitats for wildlife.

For landowners and estate managers, embracing drone reforestation can jump-start woodland projects that might otherwise be logistically unfeasible. The technology has moved beyond trials into practical deployment, with projects like Talla Reservoir proving its worth in the field. Aerial tree planting services are now available to help you restore your land’s natural forests, even in remote or rugged terrain. By partnering with experienced drone forestry teams, you can rejuvenate your landscape quickly and cost-effectively, turning challenging ground into thriving woodlands.

Harness the power of drone technology to achieve your reforestation goals. With Scotland’s first drone-seeded woodlands already taking root, now is the time to explore how forestry drone seeding can benefit your estate or project – accelerating recovery of Scotland’s wild beauty, one flight at a time.