T h e d i g i Ta l m a g a z i n e f o r s u p p o r T e r s o f T r e e s f o r C i T i e s

Tree Times05issue

an edible playground for islington

Tree-athlon 2010!

a sensory garden in sheffield

Contents

Pages 4- 5

an ediBle plaYground for islingTon Pages 8- 9

Tree-aThlon 2010!

Page 10

a sensorY garden in sheffield

TREE TIMES

Postal address: Trees for CitiesPrince Consort LodgeKennington ParkKennington Park RoadLondon SE11 4AS

05i s s u e

eMaIl: info@treesforcities.org

Contents

Pages 4- 5

an ediBle plaYground for islingTon Pages 8- 9

Tree-aThlon 2010!

TREE TIMES

it’s an exciting time for Trees for Cities with the summer season in full swing and the preparations for the Tree-athlon. i love it as it gives me the chance to deal with some of our great supporters, learning and understanding their reasons for being a part of us and giving me inspiration for the work i do.

Being involved in a whole host of events, we kicked the season off in may with our Team Trees troops hitting london’s Bupa 10K, scoring personal

bests and raising loads of funds. a massive thanks goes out to all who’ve already participated and are training hard in preparation for their race – don’t forget we really appreciate your help and support!

The biggest and my favourite is our own Tree-athlon. it’s become a massive part of Trees for Cities and a firm fixture in the running calendar. This year is very similar to previous ones in that you participate in a 5km run, make your tree wish, plant a tree

and now if you enjoy exercising barefoot, feel free to lose the sneakers. sprinting mothers with their children can now do the course with a buggy and all event areas are accessible by wheelchair. not forgetting the wealth of family fun and tree themed activities going on all around you, it promises to be a brilliant day out! register now for an exciting hot summer of trees!

Rick

Fundraising Events Coordinator

Welcome Message

an ediBle plaYground for islingTonon Thursday 10 June, we launched a new ‘edible playground’ at rotherfield primary school in north london. Blue peter gardener, Chris Collins, officially opened the garden.

rotherfield school’s playground was made up of asphalt surfaces and brick walls with a wire fence which separated it from the road. There were very few green surfaces, plants or evidence of nature for children to interact with and learn about.

TfC transformed the asphalt into outdoor learning spaces with fruit and nut trees, a woodland, as well as more traditional vegetable beds that will provide fresh organic produce which the children can take home.

rotherfield school’s headteacher elaine adams said: “This fantastic opportunity

has enabled us to transform the school environment and enrich the curriculum through first hand experience. it has brought the school and local community together in a common purpose and its potential is limitless.”www.treesforcities.org/rotherfield

Being outdoors, enjoying a rich and stimulating sensory environment, caring for plants as they grow – all these things help us relax and shed the stresses that stick to us as we go through our everyday lives. for many people living with autism and asperger’s syndrome, the stresses experienced in everyday life are greatly amplified – so the opportunity to get outdoors and immerse yourself in the wonderful sights, smells and feel of a garden

is really valuable, helping maintain good mental health and providing brilliant therapeutic benefits.

in december 2009 Trees for Cities linked up with autism plus to create a sensory garden and fruiting orchard at the Coleridge resource Centre in sheffield – a pioneering day centre for adults with autism, asperger’s syndrome and learning difficulties. The sensory garden is now providing an outdoor

therapeutic space for the 200 people who use the centre. We planted trees with striking visual, tactile and olfactory features – like magnolia and Tibetan cherry – to engage centre users’ different senses, while apple and mulberry trees will produce delicious fruit.

Centre users helped us plant the trees on the day, adding to flowers and shrubs in raised beds that had been planted at the centre

throughout the year. The digging wasn’t always easy – with the centre situated in the built-up heart of the city’s traditional steelworks district, but the volunteers had a great time, as you can see from our film of the day. The garden was officially opened on 30 april, and will really come into its own in the summer months – with barbeques already planned! www.treesforcities.org/autismplus

auTism plus Trees a sensory garden for adults with autism

Being outdoors, enjoying a rich and stimulating sensory environment, caring for plants as they grow – all these things help us relax and shed the stresses that stick to us as we go through our everyday lives. for many people living with autism and asperger’s syndrome, the stresses experienced in everyday life are greatly amplified – so the opportunity to get outdoors and immerse yourself in the wonderful sights, smells and feel of a garden

is really valuable, helping maintain good mental health and providing brilliant therapeutic benefits.

in december 2009 Trees for Cities linked up with autism plus to create a sensory garden and fruiting orchard at the Coleridge resource Centre in sheffield – a pioneering day centre for adults with autism, asperger’s syndrome and learning difficulties. The sensory garden is now providing an outdoor

therapeutic space for the 200 people who use the centre. We planted trees with striking visual, tactile and olfactory features – like magnolia and Tibetan cherry – to engage centre users’ different senses, while apple and mulberry trees will produce delicious fruit.

Centre users helped us plant the trees on the day, adding to flowers and shrubs in raised beds that had been planted at the centre

throughout the year. The digging wasn’t always easy – with the centre situated in the built-up heart of the city’s traditional steelworks district, but the volunteers had a great time, as you can see from our film of the day. The garden was officially opened on 30 april, and will really come into its own in the summer months – with barbeques already planned! www.treesforcities.org/autismplus

auTism plus Trees a sensory garden for adults with autism

Introducing the bigger and

better Tree-Athlon!Come and participate in a 5km run

in Battersea Park, London or Heaton Park, Manchester. Share your urban

tree wish and get a sapling.

This year’s best ever 5km run is available to everyone, all

the family and teams.

Run barefoot in London with

Ben Fogle and Tom Aikens! Barefoot running is running with no

shoes on, offering a completely different experience to wearing running shoes.

Abebe Bikila, Tegla Loroupe and Zola Budd are a few professional

athletes who have won international races in

their bare feet.

Tree-Athlon 2010

Tree-themed family entertainmentNorth and South events will have stands such as willow weaving, bird box making and face painting. REGISTER NOW!

a big thank you to sam metcalfe who ran the Brighton marathon in april and raised over £1000! sam said, ‘it was a really great day especially knowing i was raising money for such a great charity. i look forward

to seeing new trees planted in my city!’

Team Trees still have places in run To The Beat, so get your sneakers on and see if you can give sam a run for his money!

Introducing the bigger and

better Tree-Athlon!Come and participate in a 5km run

in Battersea Park, London or Heaton Park, Manchester. Share your urban

tree wish and get a sapling.

This year’s best ever 5km run is available to everyone, all

the family and teams.

Tree-Athlon 2010

Tree-themed family entertainmentNorth and South events will have stands such as willow weaving, bird box making and face painting. REGISTER NOW!

Back to our Roots Trees for Cities goes Back to our roots on saturday 14 august for a summer fundraising party – and it’s free in if you’re registered for the Tree-athlon! We’re taking over The driver in King’s Cross, a sumptuous gastro pub adorned with a stunning

vertical garden, from 9pm-4am. across three floors

dJs pete heller, ashley Beedle, rocky & diesel, slipped disco and leftside Wobble will entertain

with house, disco, reggae and ska.

Tickets for Back to our roots are available

now, price £10, from www.treesforcities.org/parties.

Team Trees

Training

TfC updaTes

We have just taken on ten lovely new trainees who will be with us through the summer months (weeding, watering, and more weeding!) and into project delivery through the winter season when we can already see

they will be a real asset to us.

We wish them all the best of luck for their time with us and for completing the City & guilds diploma in horticulture level 2.

VolunTeering

Trees for Cities helped out at a paul hervey-Brookes’ beautiful Biodiversity garden at Chelsea where we answered queries and undertook a questionnaire about biodiversity in built-up areas. please take a minute to complete the online questionnaire on our website. www.treesforcities.org/biodiversity

BiodiVersiTY

www.treesforcities.org/training

in may we had a picnic and sports day to celebrate all the great work our volunteers do. on the same day we held a plant

and cake sale to raise money for our edible playground in islington. The sun was shining and a fun day was had by all.

www.treesforcities.org/rotherfield

ascenta, manufacturer of the high quality omega-3 oil, nutrasea, is partnering with Trees for Cities to further efforts in bringing nature and people together.

ascenta is the first natural health products manufacturer to join

the 1% for the planet campaign and as a member has decided to donate 1% of sales to Trees for Cities. They will also be supporting our Team Trees runners.

Thank you ascenta! for more information visitfor more information visit

Chilean winery palo alto has been supporting Trees for Cities since 2006. each bottle features Trees for Cities, and through the partnership they have contributed towards our tree planting initiatives in the uK and in south america. This yearpalo alto will even be supplying the wine for the brunches at the Tree-athlon. Yum yum!‘palo alto’ is the nickname for the thorny flowering trees that are

dotted all over the rolling hillsides of the maule Valley (where the palo alto wines are produced). These trees thrive in the dry, rocky, infertile soils - soils tend to produce very high quality grapes - so it’s no coincidence that where you see a ‘palo alto’ you will often find vines. To get your own native tree sapling from palo alto - look out for a special promotion they are running over the summer months. for details go to

www.ascentahealth.co.uk

www.paloaltowines.com/rewards

raise Your glass To Trees!

1% for The planeT

legacy givinglegacy giving is a major source of income for many charities. remember Trees for Cities in your Will and you will help deprived, grey, urban areas become flourishing, green spaces with beautiful trees to be enjoyed for generations to come. Why make a Will? if you don’t make a Will the law will decide how to divide your estate among your relatives.

if you have no family everything you leave will go directly to the government.leaving a gift in your Will to Trees for Cities demonstrates a serious commitment to improving the urban environment. for information about leaving a gift in your Will see www.treesforcities.org/legacy

The great Trees of london are 60 trees around the capital that have achieved ‘great Tree’ status – as determined by Trees for Cities. The great Trees of london brings

together the most impressive, significant and unusual trees in the nation’s capital and is published in association with Time out and Trees for Cities.

To buy the great Trees of london book visit timeout.com/shop/greattrees

The Great Trees of London

Ingredients15-20 elderflower headsOne orange and one lemon, both in thick slices650g white sugar (granulated or caster both okay)850ml boiling waterOptional - 2 tablespoons of citric or tartaric acid and ¼ of a campden tabletA clean glass bottle, with screw cap

PreparationDissolve the sugar in the boiling water and let cool completely. Add in the citric/tartaric acid (if using) and make sure it’s dissolved then add in the orange, lemon and elderflower heads. Give it a good stir (no need to squeeze the fruit though) then cover with a clean tea towel and leave at room temperature for 2-3 days, stirring occasionally. Sterilise a bottle (either put in the oven if glass,

or a hot cycle with no soap in the dishwasher, or baby bottle steriliser) and strain the liquid into it using a scrupulously clean funnel and a sieve (plastic best) or muslin cloth. If you have the ¼ campden tablet (these are used in home brewing) crush it and dissolve it now as it will help it keep, if not then store in the fridge. Dilute to drink, like you would orange squash.

Cooking with Jo - Elderflower cordial This time of year the hedgerows are crammed full of elderflowers – they bloom through into early July so now’s the perfect time for making summer drinks. pick them on warm dry afternoons, and use as soon as possible – don’t wash them as you need the pollen and dust on them, but you can gently shake off any unwelcome critters (which will get filtered out at the end anyway). They should be sweet smelling and just fully open for the best flavour. This recipe is amazingly easy, just make sure all the equipment you use is really clean.