Strathlorne Forest Nursery
The Strathlorne Forest Nursery was established in 1978 in Strathlorne, a small community near the west coast of Cape Breton, just south of Inverness.

Seedling Production

The Strathlorne Forest Nursery traditionally produces conifer seedlings through a one crop per growing season schedule, trees are typically ordered 14 months before they are required for planting. Seeding takes place in May with seedlings being ready for planting the following spring. The species grown at our nursery include red spruce, black spruce, white spruce and lesser amounts of white pine, red pine, balsam fir, and Norway spruce. For species information see: http://www.cnr.vt.edu/dendro/LandownerFactsheets/index.htm

The inventory of seedlings for any particular species can vary from year to year based on customer preferences and areas where planting is occurring. Some native hardwoods are currently produced for specific customer groups but are not usually sold in small quantities.

The standard container used for growing conifer seedlings is the Jiffy® peat pellet 3065. The numeric pellet description describes the diameter of the meshed container in millimetres (30mm) and the length of the root plug in millimetres(65mm). Some production takes place in other Jiffy® containers at customer requests. The Jiffy® peat pellet is a soft-walled, meshed container that promotes good lateral root development after planting.

Seedlings are typically shipped to the planting site or customer in re-useable plastic trays (250-275 plants per tray) with the empty trays returned to the nursery or drop-off point.

Seedling Sales

Larger orders, those over 100,000 trees, must be placed prior to seeding the crop and is based on a formal “Purchase Agreement”. Annually trees are set aside to supply the needs of the consumer or contractor who might require less then 100,000 trees. See the order form for prices and shipping information. Please note: that the smallest seedling order is $200 + HST, the customer can obtain up to 1,000 ‘3065' seedlings, four species, on a minimum order. For orders less than 5,000 seedlings the price is 20 cents per tree plus tax. All orders greater than 5,000 the price is $140 per 1000 + tax. Please note the delivery dates and locations on the order form.

All seedling sales are coordinated through the clerk, Strathlorne Nursery at (902) 258-2626. Orders greater then 100,000 trees should be arranged with the Manager, Reforestation at (902)893-5667.