The Environment - Programme Ideas

Get involved in a local tree-planting programme. Many people talk about planting trees but few actually do it.

The best time to plant a tree in the United Kingdom is between December and March. Native trees (to the U.K.) do not require watering if planted during this time.

• Before planting, visualise your tree fully grown in that spot. Can you foresee any problems with roads, driveways, footpaths, nearby buildings, telephone or power lines?
• Dig a hole as deep as the tree's root ball and twice as wide.
• Make sure the root ball doesn't have compacted, self-strangling roots. Loosen them with your fingertips. Keep the roots out of direct sunlight.
• Put some of the loose dirt back in the hole and place the tree so that the top of the root ball is at the soil surface. Pack the soil firmly around the roots with the handle of your shovel to eliminate air pockets. Add more soil and pack again until it is even with the top of the root ball.
• Stake and tie the tree if necessary.

These instructions have come from Treepeople, a non-profit tree planting organisation that has worked in cooperation with the World Scout Bureau. Treepeople may be contacted at 12601 Mulholland Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 9021 0, USA.