Campaigners say targets for woodland creation are unlikely to be met because 95% of grants are for planting

The government is failing to support the natural regeneration of trees in England owing to an overwhelming focus on planting, campaigners have said.

Recent figures show only 5% of Forestry Commission grants for woodland creation have been spent on the natural regeneration of trees, while the remaining 95% is spent on tree planting.

Natural regeneration is a process through which trees grow and reproduce in the wild without human interference by self-seeding, growing new stems from roots and natural seed colonisation.