PLANS to plant up to 25,000 Christmas trees on land off the A350 have been submitted.

Stuart Munro, who owns land off the A350 in Lytchett Matravers, has applied to Dorset Council to develop a building for agricultural purposes on the site.

A statement submitted by Symonds & Sampson on behalf of the applicant said: “Mr Munro purchased the land in 2017, with the intention of using part of it for grazing sheep and part for growing Christmas trees; the latter currently measuring approximately 3.5 metres.

“We understand that Mr Munro would currently have a total of 15,000 viable trees planted on the holding.

“It is Mr Munro’s intention to plant more Christmas tree plots each year in order to provide a steady stream of mature Christmas trees for sale.

“In addition to the 15,000 viable Christmas trees already growing, the applicant’s business venture includes planting a further 10,000 trees over a period of 5 years on land measuring approximately 10 hectares.

“The applicant requires a building for the storage of general agricultural machinery, including grassland management equipment such as tractor, mower, topper and equipment for use in the Christmas tree plantations.”

The proposed building would be made of steel with a green box profile sheeting, the statement added.

A rainwater harvesting tank measuring eight metres in diameter will be on concrete slab off the western elevation.

Developers said no additional access would be required if the application was approved.

The statement added: “In respect of the ground works parallel to the A350, Mr Munro has informed us that he has recently cleared out the ditch west of the road to help the run-off water from the field and road drain better as it was flooding his woods.

“The sand which has been sited as a drain has proved successful in reducing the impact of flooding particularly in the July downpour.

“It is of vital importance that the applicant has a level hardstanding access from the entrance off the A350 to the proposed building.

“The proposed access track is to be large enough to incorporate a turning area for heavy goods vehicles to manoeuvre and park whilst collecting the Christmas trees for distribution.”