Nearly one million trees have been planted in the last year in a 400 hectare area of the Highlands.

Forestry Commission Scotland planted 985,000 trees on commission-managed land from Skye to Glenmore and all points north stopping at the Black Isle.

The trees will benefit wildlife, tourism and some business according to FCS.

Graeme Prest, district manager, said: “It’s quite a statistic when you look at it – and it’s one that usually goes unnoticed.

“Most people are aware of the felling work we do because the visual impact of suddenly not having hundreds of trees where they used to stand is quite marked. But it always takes a few years before you register the impact of a few thousand new young trees.”

He said the newly planted trees were not all commercial species.

“We’re planting more native woodland - including broadleaved species, pine and Juniper – that is a real benefit to wildlife, tourism, recreation and some small businesses,” he said.

“It’s all about sustainable forest management, ensuring that we put back more than we take out so that future generations can continue to enjoy the many benefits of healthy, well managed forests.”

The commission was the first state forest service in the world to have all its forests independently certified as sustainably managed.

Julian Fryer, area operations manager, added: “What is also pleasing is that most of the pre-planting ground preparation, plus the planting itself, has been delivered by local contractors. We really appreciate that effort they put in because it is a hard job to do – especially the planting, think of the midges and the rain.

“There is a lot of satisfaction to be gained from seeing the right species of tree being planted in the right piece of ground. That is a legacy worth leaving behind.”