Plant a tree for the Jubilee

The Queen’s Green Canopy is a unique tree planting initiative created to mark Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022 which invites people from across the United Kingdom to “Plant a Tree for the Jubilee.”

We are being encouraged to plant trees between October 2021 and March 2022.to create a long-lasting legacy of 70 years of service. The Woodland Trust is encouraging us to use the summer months to plan our response to this call.

Is this something we can do something about as a church?

It is worth noting that tree planting schemes don’t automatically create benefits, and if done badly can do more harm than good. For example, by destroying peat bogs. It needs to be the right tree, in the right place, for the right reasons. Nature based solutions to mitigate climate change, such as tree planting, need to consider wider impacts on biodiversity and local communities, according to A Rocha.

An interesting recent innovation is the Miyawaki forest, miniature forests which (according this Guardian article) grow 10 times faster and become 30 times denser and 100 times more biodiverse than those planted by conventional methods. This result is achieved by planting saplings close together, three per square metre, using native varieties adapted to local conditions. A wide variety of species – ideally 30 or more – are planted to recreate the layers of a natural forest.

The trees are already the most valuable natural asset in St Luke’s grounds. Our responsibility as stewards is to manage and enhance these for nature and for the church and local community. Your thoughts are welcome to the Eco Church group.