Residents dig deep to plant hundreds of trees across Sheffield

The community of Woodseats came together to plant over 300 trees in a local Playground as part of a dig day that took place on Sunday December 1 and saw residents from across the region come together to support the initiative.

David Kemp, Chair of Friends of Woodseats Playground: Graves Park said "It has been a great day in the Winter sunshine with local people coming out to help us with the planting.

Trees do so much for us every day. They give us oxygen, store carbon, improve air quality, conserve water, preserve soil, support wildlife and make our community more beautiful. The new trees we've planted will form a lovely hedgerow and something that the children will look at in the future and say with pride "I planted that."

The Woodseats trees were donated from The Woodland Trust.

Meanwhile volunteers from across Sheffield University recently joined the Landscape Services team to plant a tree at the residences as part of the university’s commitment to support the Woodland Trust's Big Climate Fightback campaign.

Landscape Services team have recently been working hard to plant 120 new trees at the residences. The trees have been planted as part of the university’s 2:1 tree replacement policy – a commitment to replacing any tree that has to be removed with at least two new trees.

Reasons for replacement include the trees being dead or decayed, or when they pose a health and safety risk. The team are clear that removal of trees only occurs when it is considered absolutely necessary.

Lauriane Suyin Chalmin-Pui, a PhD student in the Landscape Department who has conducted research on the impact of front gardens on health and wellbeing, said: “Trees are important as they mitigate against flooding and temperature extremes, improve air quality, reduce noise pollution, and are wildlife habitats. Just as importantly, they can create a sense of community, reduce stress levels, enhance our connection to nature, and soften the hard edges in our lives.”

National Tree Week is the UK's largest annual tree celebration, marking the start of winter tree planting season.