2015 London Tree and Woodland awards - open for nominations

The Forestry Commission Awards webpage has now been updated with details of the 2015 awards and we are now accepting nominations www.forestry.gov.uk/london-awards.

3 new categories have been added this year:

• Street Tree Award 2008-2015
• Trees and Technology Award
• Trees and Development Award

The deadline for nominations is 12th March 2015 and the nomination form is available on the webpage. There are also PDF summaries of the 2013 and 2014 awards on the webpage with links to the winners case studies, so we don’t lose this valuable legacy information.

Fund4Trees Sponsors THE TREE HUNTER

Shropshire based Tree Hunter Rob McBride, has set out to complete a ‘Tree-mendous challenge’: visiting all of the entrants in the European Tree of the Year (ETY) 2015 contest. This will take in Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Italy, France (Corsica), Spain and Belgium. http://www.treeoftheyear.org/Uvod.aspx

Mick Boddy (Trustee for F4T) says “Rob is a great ambassador for trees and their importance to our heritage and culture. We are very pleased to be able support this pan-European venture with a Fund4Trees travel and accommodation bursary.”

Since the ETY started 5 years ago over 1.1 million votes have been cast for the trees taking part in the contest. It has grown year on year and now has fourteen participating countries. The winning tree last year, an Elm tree from Bulgaria, polled over 77,000 votes. So, this year’s winning tree has some target to beat!

From the Environmental Partnership Association who organise the contest…

The purpose of the European Tree of the Year is to highlight the significance of old trees in the natural and cultural heritage that deserves our care and protection. Unlike other contests, the European Tree of the Year doesn't focus on beauty, size or age but rather on the tree's story and its connection to people. We are looking for trees that have become a part of the wider community.

Visit the organisers site here > http://www.environmentalpartnership.org/Home.aspx

One of the entrants is the Estonian Oak tree in the middle of the local football team’s pitch. The teams play around the tree using it as a passing wall to bounce passes off beating players with the old one two… or perhaps more of a one, two…TREE!

See it here http://www.treeoftheyear.org/Letosni-rocnik/Dub-na-fotbalovem-hristi.aspx

In the UK there are entrants from Wales, Scotland & England:

Wales has the amazing Lonely Tree of Llanfyllin. This well loved Scot’s Pine was sadly was blown over in February 2014. But, the tree is still partly alive and ‘phoenixing’: rising again from its now prostrate position.

http://www.treeoftheyear.org/Letosni-rocnik/Osamely-strom-v-Llanfyllinu.aspx

Scotland. Rob has been given special access to visit the Scottish entrant, the Lady’s tree, a Scot’s Pine growing in a nature reserve at Loch of the Lowes near Dunkeld, Perthshire. The tree has a nest near the top which has been the home of Lady the Osprey for the last 24 years…there is also a much visited webcam from which you can see Lady and her many hatched chicks. http://www.treeoftheyear.org/Letosni-rocnik/Strom-Damy.aspx

England, and of course, Rob will visit the world famous Major Oak in Sherwood Forest, ’Robin Hood’s Oak tree’. After hosting the awards ceremony in the EU Parliament Brussels last year, Rob promised there would be an English tree in the contest for 2015, as there had not been an English entrant previously. The Woodland Trust has now, very successfully, taken on the task of bringing the English entrant to the contest. http://www.treeoftheyear.org/Letosni-rocnik/Velky-dub.aspx

He will cross the Irish Sea to visit the Irish tree entrant with its emotional story, in Ballinderry, Co. Tipperary. http://www.treeoftheyear.org/Letosni-rocnik/Libanonsky-cedr.aspx

Notes

(i) For further information contact Rob on 07814526077 / 01691-622837 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

(ii) Royal Forestry Society (Randle Travel Bursary) also provided sponsorship http://www.rfs.org.uk/

LTOA Elect New Executive Committee

The London Tree Officers Association (LTOA) have announced a newly elected Executive Committee to head up the Association for the next two years. The committee were elected by the organisation’s membership and will continue to develop and support the management of London’s trees.

For full details of the new committee, to read their short biographies, click here.

The new Chair of the Executive Committee is Richard Edwards, Tree & Woodland Officer for the London Borough of Croydon; the new Vice Chair is John Parker, Arboriculture & Landscape Manager for Transport for London (Central area). The Chair, Vice Chair and committee members Jake Tibbetts (Islington), Dave Lofthouse (Merton), Andy Tipping (Barnet), Oliver Stutter (Southwark), Rupert Bentley-Walls (Hackney), Barbara Milne (Westminster), Gary Meadowcroft (Southwark), Paul Akers (Westminster) Colleen O’Sullivan (Camden) and Lawrence Usherwood (Brent) will drive the Association forward over the next two years, developing tree management within the Capital and promoting the activities of the Association.

Richard Edwards, new chair of the LTOA said:

"I am delighted and honoured to have been elected by our Members as Chair of the London Tree Officers Association (LTOA). Many thanks to Jake Tibbetts, my predecessor as Chair, for all his hard work over the last two years. Over that period the organisation has successfully developed and improved partnership working, building strong relationships with the Trees and Design Action Group, the Forestry Commission and Thames Water to name but a few, and our reputation and standing has increased inside and outside of the industry.

Over the next two years I intend to continue this great work, as well as concentrating on maximising the benefits that LTOA membership can bring to grass roots tree officers to aid them in their day to day activities, whether that be through seminars, working groups or publications. I am a great believer in using the exchange of information and knowledge to support tree officers and develop their skills, and we will be working hard over the coming months to achieve this."

Kew Urban Forest Resilience - summary of the conference now available

The conference, attended by over 100 delegates, provided a thought provoking programme. Presentations and discussions ranged from strategic resilience to implementation of good practice. Kew Gardens provided the perfect venue to consider and see potential alternative species that could help build a more resilient urban forest for the future.

Click here for details of the conference including presentations, key messages and discussions.