A strong community, just like a healthy tree, starts with solid roots. So, what better way for a community to look back to its roots, and put down fresh ones, than by coming together to grow more trees from seed?
23rd September marks the start of Seed Gathering Season 2015 – a month-long festival organised by The Tree Council, which aims to inspire people to get outside and gather, nurture and germinate tree seeds for the benefit of their neighbourhoods.
The trees that are most likely to put down the strongest roots are the ones whose seeds have been gathered from local stock. Walks in the autumn sunshine provide the perfect opportunity to collect local seeds from parks, streets, woods and hedgerows.
In addition to thinking about their local treescape and growing the trees of the future, The Tree Council is also encouraging everyone to make the most of the autumn harvest by gathering nuts, fruits and berries to eat and make into delicious autumnal treats.
If you want to be sure that you are picking and collecting the right things in the right places, you can join events that will taking place up and down the country, run by The Tree Council’s member organisations, its network of volunteer Tree Wardens and other supporters, including harvest festivals, orchard and apple days and hedgerow cookery lessons. Further information, an events map and a free poster to download can be found on The Tree Council’s website, http://www.treecouncil.org.uk.
‘Our popular Good Seed Guide is a mine of information about how to gather and sow tree seeds, whist Trees and How To Grow Them has lots more information about the trees themselves’ said Pauline Buchanan Black, director-general of The Tree Council. ‘And for the communities that want to bond over food, our Hedgerow Harvest website has recipes aplenty. The community that plants and eats together, puts down roots together.’