“Restoring underground networks means ensuring the success of tree planting, creating ecological and economic value, and opening up new markets for our technology”, says Toby Parkes, CEO and co-founder of Rhizocore Technologies, a Scottish company that is revolutionising reforestation with an innovative approach based on native mycorrhizal fungi – organisms that support tree growth by enhancing nutrient uptake through their roots.
When a forest is felled, these underground networks die off rapidly, making replanting more difficult and slowing the growth of new trees. This is precisely where Rhizocore steps in, with its RhizoPellets – small pellets containing local fungi, tailored to each planting site. Placed in the soil alongside young trees, these pellets strengthen the root system, improve the uptake of nutrients and water, and increase survival rates.
Field trials have produced promising results. In projects with Forestry and Land Scotland, the survival rate of trees treated with RhizoPellets reached 97 per cent, compared with 78 per cent for untreated trees. In other trials, Sitka spruce grew 23 per cent faster than untreated plants on land previously used for grazing, whilst birch recorded growth rates up to 13 times higher in Trees for Life projects.
The Edinburgh-based company is not limited to reforestation. In collaboration with the James Hutton Institute, Harper Adams University and the Cheshire Wildlife Trust, Rhizocore is developing innovative biofilters that use locally sourced fungi to capture and neutralise pollutants from agricultural activities before they reach rivers and streams, thereby offering low-cost, nature-based solutions for protecting water resources and biodiversity.
In November 2025, Rhizocore announced that it had successfully raised £4.5 million to scale up production of RhizoPellets. Thanks to this funding, the company will be able to expand its Scottish facility, develop new applications and continue building the world’s largest database of living fungi, reinforcing the role of mycology in ecosystem restoration.
Name:
Rhizocore
Website:
Sector:
Environmental biotechnology
Plus:
Building the world’s largest database of living fungi
Features:
Reforestation using native mycorrhizal fungi
Cover: Envato image