Six members plus a Soroptimister returned to the former landfill site at Tovil on Saturday 25 November. This was where we planted 420 tree whips in January 2021 and returned the following year to install a bench and commemorative plaque.
We were equipped with spades and wearing Hi-Viz vests ready to do some tree planting. Although the weather was cold, the sky was blue and dry this time very different to the damp fog in 2021.
We were aware that a significant number of the 420 trees planted in January 2021 had not survived the extreme hot weather conditions that summer.
Sharon Forghani had ordered 60 tree whips from the Woodland Trust to replace those that had not survived. These whips are provided free to community groups such as Soroptimist clubs. There were a variety of native species including hazel, rowan, blackthorn, silver birch, and common oak.
The UK needs millions more trees to reach its 2050 carbon net zero target. By digging in with the Woodland Trust, we are helping to achieve this important goal.
On arrival we could see that Maidstone Borough Council had cut down all the overgrown foliage in the wildlife area so we could do the tree planting more easily. Unfortunately, this action had resulted in further damage to the original tree whips. Before we started any further planting we set about locating as many of the tree whips and ensuring they were supported with canes.
After a productive morning planting the 60 new tree whips, we marked the whips on the perimeters using the green packaging to identify them more easily. A commitment was made to return to the site and take responsibility in future for cutting the area in between the whips ourselves and not rely on the council contractors.