TREES
Orchard work day with
busy volunteers
trail along the
canal in either
direction over
the winter, linking
the green open
spaces of Hanwell
and Southall.
GET PLANTING IN
SOUTHALL
Now, Southall Transition, a local
community group that was set up recently
with a view to promoting sustainability
projects, has thrown its weight behind
a new Southall Orchard Project,
preparing the way for Southall Park to
become the latest outdoor larder.
A tree planting event will be held
on Saturday, 5 December and you are
welcome to get involved. The group
will be joined by Villiers High School
children and their parents, council
park rangers, volunteers from the Tree
Council and local people.
The old rose garden in the park, now
mostly grass and soil, will be converted
into an orchard with nine fruit-bearing
trees planted, surrounded by hedges that
will bear berries and also nuts. If enough
volunteers are available on the day, a
few extra trees will also be interspersed
between existing birch trees that stand
alongside the
garden area.
The Southall
Orchard Project
members are
already looking at
expanding and setting
up similar schemes at up
to four more open spaces in
the town.
Mani Dhanda got
involved after taking
part in the Hanwell
orchard project
in 2014. He
said: “I got
involved because
I thought it was
a brilliant idea to
plant more trees,
especially fruit trees.
They will be of manifold
benefit to the community: Beautify
the area, help create cleaner air and
provide food. Trees are underrated and
I want to encourage people to start
appreciating them.”
Southall resident Tim Uthmann is also
volunteering and said: “What drew me
to this is the community aspect – local
people coming together and getting
their hands dirty for the community.”
MORE INFO
■
To get involved, contact
[email protected]
or visit
www.southalltransition.org/
projects
■
To set up a similar idea in your
area visit community project and
volunteering website Bubble at
www.dosomethinggood.org.uk
‘WE ARE SO LUCKY
LIVING IN EALING’
Carole Connelly has been
involved with the orchard
projects since the one in
Greenford’s Ravenor Park,
and has also signed up as a
tree warden with the council (see
the box below ‘Caring for our trees’ for
more information).
She said: “We are so lucky living in
Ealing – it is so green. People just need
to stop and look. I have learned so much
about trees since I started, and become
so much more aware of them. Seeing the
saplings we planted a couple of years back
looking lovely and flourishing is great. I
report if I see anything wrong with any
trees and I like to act as their eyes now.”
Caring for our trees
T
rees need a bit of attention
from time to time, and there are
tens of thousands of them in our
area – in your garden, your road, or in
your local park.
The council manages around 27,000
trees on residential streets, and more
than 50,000 trees in parks and open
spaces around the borough. We
planted 1,500 new trees, the largest
number in London, as part of the
Mayor of London’s Street Tree scheme.
Could you be a tree warden and help
look after newly planted trees in your area?
The tree warden initiative aims to
equip people with skills and knowledge
about trees and their local environment.
Anyone interested in volunteering as
a tree warden should contact Susan
Wyatt at [email protected]
around ealing
Winter 2015/16
19