Written by: Johanna Willi
2026
Fife Golf Trust was delighted to work with Pitteuchar, Stenton & Finglassie Community Council to create valuable wetland habitat. The partnership began in 2024, when the Trust was establishing a new wetland mosaic at Glenrothes Golf Course.
At the time, the team was seeking wetland plants that might be available from local pond restoration projects. Reusing surplus plants would help the new freshwater habitat establish more quickly, support wildlife colonisation, and minimise the carbon footprint associated with procuring and transporting purpose-grown stock.
Meanwhile, an ambitious community-led restoration programme was underway at Stenton Ponds in south Glenrothes. The ponds had become heavily overgrown, and sections were being cleared to create open water for wildlife. As vegetation was initially being disposed of as green waste, an opportunity arose to salvage and repurpose the plants.
Over several weekends, volunteers and the Trust’s Conservation Worker donned waders to carefully dig up deeply rooted reeds and grasses. The plants were lifted into a trailer and transported to the golf course, where another group of volunteers helped to replant them within the newly created wetlands. The translocated vegetation established very successfully.
