This Winter we were a partner on Cornwall Council’s Trees Outside of Woodlands Project. We worked with communities alongside Cornwall Council & Cormac to plan and plant new community orchards at Penwithick & St Just as well as adding fruit trees to cemeteries at Liskeard & St Blazey. The project, funded by The Tree Council and DEFRA, sought to establish new trees within streets, parks and shared green spaces targeting areas of deprivation, and/or with low levels of canopy cover and poor provision of green infrastructure.
Residents close to the proposed spaces were invited to get involved and we met many people with a passion for trees and for their local green spaces. We then worked with local residents and two school groups to develop plans and plant the trees. From initial discussions up to planting days we have been developing a network of local contacts interested in ensuring the trees do well longer term. We know how well fruit trees in public spaces do when there is a committed & connected group of local people who feel empowered to help care for the trees longer term. For some, this leads to organising community events in these green spaces. Each of these sites is managed by Cormac and has an Urban Ranger attached to them to support long term tree care.
Planting fruit trees is slightly different from planting wild trees as they have been grafted and we want lots of good quality fruit from them, so we taught the importance of ensuring the grafting point remains above the soil level when planting. We also pruned the young trees as we planted them, to ensure tree branches were not going to rub against tree guards and to help determine the height at which the branches would branch out. Thanks to everyone for joining us.
All trees were planted with long term success in mind:
– Trees chosen suitable for Cornwall’s wet & windy but mild climate
– Disease resistance varieties chosen
– Application of biochar into planting holes
– Trees well mulched with woodchip and mulch mats
– Trees well planted with graft union above the soil level
– Woodchip applied to a thickness of 10 cm and 1m width, with mulch removed from around the trunk to prevent rotting.
– Sufficient staking and protection in these well used public spaces
– Trees pruned where appropriate to ensure branches do not rub against tree guards and branch out at a suitable height.
Penwithick Park
Treverbyn Academy joined us to plant some of the fruit trees at Penwithick Park, a park which many of the students know well and live close to.
St Just Rec
At St Just Rec we worked with local school St Just Academy’s Year 5 students to plant the fruit trees. Trees included a medlar, apples, pears and plums.
St Blazey
Liskeard
At Liskeard we worked with a group of Cornwall College Horticulture students to plant the cherries and apples at the cemetery.
At the cemetery at Liskeard there were a variety of challenges to consider prior to planting decisions could be finalised.
Cornwall College Horticulture group: ‘Thank you for inviting us to the tree planting. It was lovely to meet you and everyone enjoyed the session. They have all been talking about it‘