Bracken presence and management practices on Scottish grassland farms - 2025

Glossary and background notes

Bracken is used throughout this report to refer to the plant species Pteridium aquilinum (L.), a native fern that is primarily associated with woodland but is commonly found in a range of natural and semi-natural habitats across the UK.

Asulox is a plant protection product (PPP) containing the active substance asulam. Asulox is a herbicide (a substance that controls unwanted plants) which was previously authorised on an annual basis, by emergency authorisation, for bracken management by both aerial and ground based application.

Emergency Authorisation is a process where an unauthorised PPP can be authorised for limited and controlled use in special circumstances where its use is necessary because of a danger that cannot be contained by other reasonable means

HSE (Health and Safety Executive) are the UK pesticide regulator and make decisions on pesticide approval and authorisation on behalf of UK and devolved Government Ministers.

Scottish Bracken Working Group ^[4] a short life group, chair and sectretariat provided by Scottish Government Officials, providing a forum for stakeholder engagement on bracken and its management.

Mechanical management of bracken involves using machinery. This includes various methods such as cutting (also referred to as topping and flailing) most usually powered by tractors and quad bikes/all terrain vehicles (ATVs). Robotic cutters/flailers can be used on steep terrain.

Chemical management is the use of herbicides to treat bracken. Weed wiping is a selective, drift free method of herbicide applicaton (usually used for glyphosate) that uses sponge or roller wipers to treat the target plant directly. Aerial spraying is the practice of application of a pesticide from an airborne vehicle. Knapsack application is where the pesticide is contained in a knapsack worn by the applicator with the pesticides dispensed from a hand-held lance.

Manual bracken management includes hand cutting/pulling or using hand tools such as a scythe.

Livestock management involves use of livestock to trample/suppress bracken growth. This is usually associated with use of fencing/virtual fencing and supplemental feeding.

The June Agricultural Census ^[8] is conducted annually by the Scottish Government's Rural and Environmental Science Analytical Services (RESAS). The June Agricultural Census collects data on land use, crop areas, livestock and the number of people working on agricultural holdings. For this report the June Agricultural Census was used to draw a sample of landownders growing the relevant crops to participate in the survey.

Due to rounding, there may be slight differences in totals both within and between tables.