Nova Scotia Plants 300,000 Trees After Historic Wildfire

The forest is coming back to Shelburne County, and it's happening faster than anyone expected.

Bushwhackers Forestry has planted close to 300,000 trees this spring in areas scorched by the 2023 Barrington Lake wildfire. They're planning another 70,000 trees this fall, cutting access trails right now to prepare the ground.

"We've been planting a lot of trees," said Trevor Schmidt, who runs the company with his wife Laura. The couple is part of a massive restoration effort following Nova Scotia's largest recorded wildfire, which burned through 23,000 hectares over two weeks, forced 5,000 people from their homes, and destroyed 31 structures.

The tree planting is funded through the Thriving Forests program, run by the Clean Foundation. Federal and provincial governments invested more than $40 million to plant up to 21 million trees by 2031 across Nova Scotia. It's part of Canada's ambitious 2 Billion Trees Program.

The program does more than repair wildfire damage. It helps landowners restore retired farmland to forest and improves biodiversity in areas where trees can make the biggest difference.

Project lead Madison Lloyd held an information session in Shelburne in July to connect with local landowners. "Around 2023 was when we started seeing a lot of these larger wildfires and it has really become a really important part of our program," she said.

The Ripple Effect

The application process takes just five minutes online. After submitting an expression of interest, landowners can expect contact within weeks. The full process from application to planting takes about a year to 18 months, allowing time for site visits, planning, and ordering trees from nurseries.

Project specialists use drones to assess land conditions, density, and soil quality. At the scale they're planting, trees cost just $2 each compared to $2,200 for landscaping projects. That efficiency means more acres restored and more wildlife habitat created.

The program focuses on forested land recovery, not streetscaping or wetlands. But for landowners who inherited farmland they no longer want to farm, or areas devastated by wildfire, the program offers a fully funded path to restoration.

Applications are accepted year round through the Clean Foundation's website. Communities across Nova Scotia are watching Shelburne County's forests grow back, knowing the same help is available to them.