Plant a tree for free: our Garden Forest Scheme
Applications for the second round of this scheme closed on Sunday, 12 February and successful applicants were contacted shortly afterwards.
More than 40,000 trees have now been planted across the borough between November 2021 and March 2023, with the Garden Forest Scheme playing a pivotal role in this.
The information below is for historic purposes - please watch this space for further updates.
As part of our ambition to reduce our emissions and become a net-zero carbon borough, our Garden Forest Scheme invites residents to join in by planting one or more trees in their garden.
Following a successful pilot round, which saw about 800 people collect a sapling at the start of the 2022-2034 planting season, we're inviting a second round of applications by 12 February.
We hope to process these by the end of the current planting season in March, when we'll contact successful applicants to pick up their tree from a dedicated point in the borough.
This scheme is generously supported by a £300,000 contribution from the Woodland Trust's Emergency Tree Fund.
How can I apply?
The scheme is open to anyone with a Wokingham borough postcode, including businesses or community groups, who either owns sufficient land or has access to land where the owner has given permission for planting.
You will be able request up to 10 trees by completing the survey at the bottom of this page before Sunday, 12 February 2023:
Five different species are on offer and we'll do all we can to honour people's preferences on collection day, though stocks may be limited and will be given out on a first-come, first-served basis.
• Hazel (Corylus avellana): 60 to 80cm, grows 40 to 60cm annually, full height 4 to 10m
• Crab apple (Malus sylvestris): 60 to 90cm, grows 30cm annually, full height 7 to 9m
• Rowan (Sorbus aucuparia): 60 to 80cm, grows 20 to 40cm annually, full height 8 to 10m
• Silver birch (Betula pendula): 80 to 100cm, grows 40cm annually, full height 15 to 20m
• Field maple (Acer campestre): 60 to 80cm, grows 40 to 60cm annually, full height 20m
Trees help with carbon sequestration, a process in which they remove and store excess carbon from the atmosphere and reduce its harmful impact on the climate.
Phases
Garden Forest Scheme launch
Garden Forest Scheme launch
In celebration of National Tree Week, we have launched our Garden Forest Scheme. Residents can complete an expression of interest for a tree in their garden, which will close at the end of January. In March, we will let you know the outcome of your expression of interest and the next steps for collecting your tree later at the beginning of the next planting season in early Autumn.
The scheme will run for two years initially, with several thousand trees allocated for private gardens.
To enable us to gauge the popularity of the project and accommodate as many interested and suitable residents as possible we want to allow the time to ensure that the scheme runs as smoothly as possible. In future launches of the scheme, we anticipate that the time between application and supply to successful applicants will be shorter.
Please complete the following details to register your interest in the Garden Forest Scheme. You will be contacted directly by Wokingham Borough Council in March 2022 following review of your application.
This scheme is open to Wokingham Borough residents who own or have access to a residential garden in the borough. Please note it is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure permission has been granted from the freeholder of the land where the tree/s will be planted and by registering for this expression of Interest you agree to have this permission granted.
You will need to be able to collect a tree from a participating garden centre.
This scheme is being organised by Wokingham Borough Council as part of the 5-year Tree Planting Project with funding support from The Woodland Trust.
For more information please see attached FAQ document or email 250ktreeproject@wokingham.gov.uk