Here we will share some of the ideas that are beginning to emerge in Dorset to encourage a greener recovery from the pandemic, ideas based on our love of trees and hedgerows. These ideas include:
- A network of Community-led Tree Nurseries in Dorset, where groups get together to collect and sow the seeds of veteran trees in their patch, look after these for three or four years before planting them in a suitable place locally.
- The planting of a few woods using the Miyawaki method. This involves the dense planting of young trees appropriate to the area to create a wood of different layers – from canopy trees at the top to a shrub layer below. In the UK, these woods are often very small, some no bigger than a tennis court. There is a helpful description of this interesting method of tree planting here.
- An extension of the ‘Trees for Bees’ idea so that young trees – which are known to be liked by pollinators and are suitable for planting in small gardens – are offered to people in Dorchester in order to strengthen the network of pollen and nectar sources around the town
