It’s been a couple months since we last updated you on the Forest For Launceston project and we are delighted there has been so much progress.
You may remember the project has, up until now, been fairly focused on one piece of woodland that is being developed for community use, whereas now we have a number of projects in Launceston and surrounding Parishes coming under the same umbrella.
The first woodland project, that the community has so generously donated towards, had a Cornwall Council woodland management audit late last year to essentially do a bit of a health check, this has highlighted some actions and in the next month or so work will start to ensure the woodland is in the best state.
One of the actions will be to fell many of the Ash trees as they have a disease called Ash Dieback, to find out more click here.
Though don’t worry…as part of the woodland management plan we will be replanting with native, broadleaf species that will replace, improve and increase the bio-diversity.
There are also parts of the area that have been mis-used (for fly-tipping) for many years so a huge, professional clean-up operation will also be carried out this summer, along with new fencing, paths, and of course places to sit and admire the space.
We hope to be able to announce its location soon, though as long as the works are going on it is not a safe site for people to visit so thank you for bearing with us for the time being.
Talking of tree planting, we were absolutely thrilled with the ‘re-home an Oak Tree’ scheme we ran last month. As a result of a generous donator, we are delighted to let you know that we have successfully donated just over 600 trees which are all now planted in their new homes all across Launceston and surrounding Parishes. We are keen to continue to support other tree planting schemes, so if you have an aspiration let us know how we can help you! This is all part of our vision for Forest for Launceston – not a single site forest in the traditional meaning of the word but a forest of trees in clusters right across the Launceston area. Some newly planted, some mature – all accessible to our community, catalogued and looked after by diverse landowners and managers. If you are a landowner open to planting more trees and making the space around them accessible to the community, you too can be part of the Forest for Launceston.
As we are committed to increasing the open space, biodiversity and woodland for our beautiful area, we are delighted to be engaging with a whole range of amazing strategic partners like Forest For Cornwall, Westcountry Rivers Trust, and Wildlife Trust to help support us with current and new projects.