Green Print Forum gave us £1,600 for Nature First, a project to begin planting up the 17 acres of land working with children and elders and experts and locals
October 2022
It was a mast year, a gift for us, for the ground under oaks was carpeted in thousands of acorns.
We collected acorns from oak trees near by, from Staverton Thicks, from Sotterly. We examined them, cut them open.
November 2022
We soaked the acorns in water for a week, and when sprouting we planted them in trays, jay beak depth.
January 2023 – planting first hedge
First hedge planting, along the western side. We had a great team.
February – more hedge planting along the eastern side, with the help of Sam unexpectedly.
March – 1,000 whips arrive. Thanks to Suffolk Tree Wardens, an unexpected gift of over 1,000 whips arrived to make a new hedge on the land. Provided by The Tree Council as a part of the 2022/23 Network Rail Community Tree Planting Programme, they were going spare and late. With the Elders we unpacked the huge crate and begged borrowed and found containers to plunge their roots into water. Full report here
Next plant here
Kids plant hornbeam
kalikellettEdit “Kids plant hornbeam”
A call from Mell – which ones shall we plant? Hornbeam was an easy call, to continue the hornbeam hedge to protect the community garden – still very unformed.
Here they are. I love this image
April Sowing seed in the best spring in many years, it was wet! Children from Wednesday tribe lined up on the eastern side of the field to walk west and scatter seed, with words of love and propagation.
Working with Elders to complete the hedge, taking a break here
May 2023 – we made scarcrows and put into the newly planted field.
Kinda Forest School 