Mansfield District Council, Sherwood Forest Trust and the NHS have united together to begin planting 3,400 trees across the district to ‘green up’ the town.
The opportunity to plant new trees follows the launch of a new scheme to create climate-combatting woodlands, coordinated by the Greenwood Community Forest with its key partner The Sherwood Forest Trust (The Trees for Climate Team).
The Trees for Climate project will see a variety of tree roots planted in key sites across the district, including, Peafield Lane Park, Fisher Lane Park and Carter Lane. The council has been working proactively with the Trees for Climate team for the last eight months to identify existing parks and nature reserves where the planting could take place. When choosing the locations, consideration was given to avoid any potential impact on neighbouring properties with overhanging branches and root growth. The council also ensured the tree species selected for planting on the sites would not grow out of control, or require significant maintenance by the parks team.
The first round of tree planting is expected to be complete by late March, with more sessions planned for October 2023 and March 2024.
The Greenwood Community Forest, along with the other 12 Community Forests in England, was awarded funding from the Government’s Nature for Climate fund in November 2021 to deliver the woodland creations, aiming to address climate change and carbon mitigation through planting millions of trees across England.
For the Mansfield planting, Sherwood Forest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has also supported this campaign with an additional contribution of 140 fruit trees to the site in Peafield Lane.
Portfolio Holder for Environment and Leisure, Councillor Andy Burgin, said it was fantastic to see the works begin to benefit the community and local wildlife.
He said: “I am delighted to see the work that is now taking shape across the whole of Mansfield, with new trees being planted weekly all around the district. I am particularly excited about the new community orchard created at Peafield Park, off Peafield Lane, where we see the fantastic work of volunteers and community spirit come together.
“Over the next 20 years, we hope that this orchard will blossom into a beautiful community resource that will help to benefit local nature and wildlife, residents of the area and help to mitigate against climate change.
“These trees, once mature, will improve biodiversity, reduce CO2 emissions and increase our woodland cover district-wide.”
The project has seen a variety of tree species planted so far, including Silver Birch, Oak, Hazel, Willow, Alder, Blackthorn, Hawthorn, Horse Chestnut & Beech.
Dr Patrick Candler, Chief Executive of the Sherwood Forest Trust, said: “It has been really great to get out on site and put the trees in the ground as we know that this is a good thing all round with huge benefits.
“The Trees for Climate project will see thousands of trees planted in Nottinghamshire and beyond. The Trees for Climate Team are pleased to work in partnership with Mansfield District Council on the delivery, and it was so timely to work with the hospital trust and to join with them as part of their Hope Orchard campaign."
Over the coming weeks, local businesses, community groups, and schools will support other tree planting events as part of the Trees for Climate project. These will be at:
- Wednesday 8 March
- Carter Lane in Warsop Vale (NG20 8XF)
- Monday 13 to Thursday 16 March
- Deepdale Road in Mansfield Woodhouse (NG19 0QA)
- Monday 20 to Wednesday 22 March
- Thorpelands Avenue in Mansfield Woodhouse (NG19 0LZ)
- Monday 27 to Tuesday 28 March
- Fisher Lane Park in Mansfield (NG18 2SB)
Director of Strategy and Partnerships for Sherwood Forest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, David Ainsworth, added: “It’s amazing how in the face of climate change we see communities unite and do something positive together.
“Planting trees is an important part of contributing towards climate action and is one aspect amongst lots of other activities we are undertaking.
“We are grateful and humbled that we get to perform this vital work with our partners Mansfield District Council and the Sherwood Forest Trust as part of Trees for Climate. It goes to show how working together, you can really accomplish something great.”
For further information about the project, visit the Greenwood Community Forest website.