The Silk Wood Community Planting Project at Westonbirt, The National Arboretum was created to overcome the impact of an ash dieback outbreak through an exemplary regeneration and replanting of approx 9,000 trees within Silk Wood.
This story began in 2020, when trees infected by Chalara ash dieback needed to be felled and removed from Silk Wood. This three-year project created Westonbirt’s first Community Woodland through the involvement of local groups and schools in tree planting and care.
Involving the community
We have involved hundreds of people in each step of the woodland regeneration process. Young people, individuals from under-served communities, those with neurodiverse conditions and people of a broad range of ethnicities have been a part of this journey. They worked alongside Westonbirt’s team in the design, ground clearance and preparation, tree planting, monitoring and care of this beautiful woodland.
Find out more about involvement in the project.
Replanting Silk Wood
By building resilience into the design, we can help ensure the woodland will be enjoyed for generations to come. A diverse mix of suitable tree species have been planted that will help mitigate threats from a changing climate. This will also strengthen the structure of the woodland, increasing biological diversity and helping create resistance to other impacts such as storms.
Mostly native trees have been planted, including English and sessile oak, field maple and hawthorn. As we expect our climate to warm, we have also planted species that have a more southerly provenance, for example, alder trees originating from Italy!
What has been achieved?
We’ve completed the third and final season of planting, with 9,000 trees planted across the five-hectare site. This scale of planting has not been seen at the Arboretum for many years and has been made possible thanks to the support of more than 3,500 volunteers from over 50 community groups.
While winter is the time for planting, during the summer seasons, we invited groups back to help us care for the young trees they helped us plant. This included watering, mulching, weeding and general site maintenance.
We also delivered engaging nature-based wellbeing sessions, designed to help participants feel the benefits of spending time in nature, and connecting with trees. They joined skills-based sessions, measuring tree height, identifying plants and learning about forestry. Creative activities such as mindful photography and nature journaling made further use of the newly planted site.
Projects like this highlight the work Westonbirt is doing to deliver a 10-year vision by connecting more people with trees to improve the quality of life, through education, conservation, and participation.
Special thanks to the funders of this project for their invaluable support which has nurtured new life in Silk Wood, from thriving native trees to a vibrant community invested in its future. Their generosity has helped secure a flourishing legacy for generations to come.
Explore the community woodland
Follow the link to view our interactive map of the Silk Wood Community Woodland.
It features photos, links, stats, information about tree planting, stats, participating groups and more!
