Jess Massucco of Trees for Cities writes:
Trees for Cities worked in partnership with the London Borough of Tower Hamlets to plant trees in Mile End Park. A total of 21 heavy standard trees and a mixed native hedge of whips were planted in two areas of the park – Agnes Green in the south of the park, and Haverfield Green to add to the trees that were planted there in 2019. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, activities with the pubic were reduced and carefully monitored.
Consultation
We spent one day at the park in July 2020 to introduce the project and consult park users on the locations and potential species of the trees. Twenty eight people took part in the socially distanced consultation activity which invited them to vote for the preferred tree species out of the presented selection. Responses were positive and no concerns were raised. Posters were put up at the proposed planting locations and no further feedback was received.
Community planting
Workshops for local household units or individuals were promoted in the area, including at Bede Estate adjacent to the park, where Trees for Cities is delivering a project in partnership with EastendHomes.
All 18 workshops were booked, and 14 of them were attended by 21 adults and two children (with four cancellations due to the rain). We also delivered a session with eight corporate volunteers and involved a trainee from the Bankside Open Spaces Trust.
Five trees were planted on Agnes Green. These included three native species – wild service, lime and copper beech, as well as a tulip tree which has spectacular flowers that attract bees. Around a thousand mixed native whips were planted to create around 40 metres of hedge.
At Haverfield Green, 16 trees were planted. These were mostly native species, including elm, hazel, wild service, lime, beech and spindle. Most of them were planted around the edges of the existing Woodland Walk, to extend the area of native woodland.
All photos by Trees for Cities – click to enlarge
