Enjoy and Notice Trees (ENTs)

September, 1st to 23rd/30th

Trees Love Care - closing weeks of a seasonal campaign which starts in March (see below) emphasising the importance of early-years tree care.

Idea for discussion: In what ways are young trees similar to children? Consider trees which grow themselves where a seed ends up and those that are grown for transplanting by people. (Probably more easily explored after a year or so of paying attention to trees. Creative writing opportunity and more.)

ChiTrees (Chichester Tree Wardens' tree recording project) continues (until leaf fall). Starts in May when most leaves have emerged making tree identification easier (see below).

September, October

23rd to 23rd

The Tree Council's annual Seed Gathering Season invites everyone to gather seeds, fruits and nuts which can be nurtured to grow the trees of the future. The month-long campaign, which has been running for more than 20 years, starts on the autumn equinox, considered to be the first day of autumn.

Idea: October is the perfect time to be inspired to make the RSPB's Forest Floor Traybake, featured below.

Additional Resources

The Tree Growers Guide is great for working out what to do when.

Consider: could you create a mini tree nursery? The Community Tree Nursery Collaborative has masses of resources to show you how. What would happen to the trees you grow?

Visit suggestion: Special Branch at Stanmer Park, Brighton (run by volunteers).

October

7th October 2023

UK Fungus Day is an annual celebration of fungi. 2023 is its 10th year.

"Alongside the many UK-based groups, museums, universities and research centres offering a chance to join fungus walks, view fungi collections and visit exhibitions of the latest fungal science and technology, UK Fungus Day invites everyone to join in, delve deeper and learn more about fungi through art and performance, crafts and creations, online talks, quizzes and competitions."

Additional Resources

"Trees and Fungi Working Together" webinar hosted by the Tree Council for National Tree Week 2022 (suggested suitability post-GCSE)

November

check date each year (7th in 2024)

Outdoor Classroom Day: "Outdoor Classroom Day is a global movement to inspire and celebrate outdoor play and learning, at home and at school. On Outdoor Classroom Day itself, which has two dates each year, teachers celebrate with a special day outdoors for their class."

Outdoor Classroom Day is promoted by outdoor learning and play charity Learning through Landscapes in the UK and Ireland. (LtL helps teachers take learning outdoors by providing ideas and activities developed by teachers and early years educators for curriculum-led outdoor learning, as well as Forest Kindergarten and Forest School. Its free resources can be filtered by age group and/or curriculum subject/play.)

end November - start December

Saturday 25th November to Sunday 3rd December 2023

National Tree Week is the UK’s largest annual tree celebration, marking the start of the winter tree planting season (November to February*).

*suggested for Chichester in light of 2020 to 2022 weather patterns, traditionally March

Consider: how tree celebrations vary around the world. For example, National Arbor Day in the US is always celebrated on the last Friday in April, and traces its origins back to 1872!

March, 20th (start)

to 23rd September

Trees Love Care - for transplanted trees to thrive they need early-years care. TLC is a Tree Council campaign.

Additional Resources

Arboricultural Association: Guide to Young Tree Establishment

Arboricultual Association: Watering Young Trees (includes free resources); YouTube clip

April, 1st to 30th

Spring in Your Step is the Tree Council's encouragement to appreciate the beauty of local trees and hedgerows in Spring. Link includes a fabulous Blossom ID guide.

Also Trees Love Care campaign continues (until 23rd September).

April, 22nd

Earth Day was founded in the US in 1970 and went global in 1990. Each year has a different theme, but trees fit right in. Website includes environmental education resources and Earth Day Schools. (At the time of writing, our nearest Earth Day School on the map is Thomas a Becket Junior School in Worthing.)

May, 1st (start)

ChiTrees (Chichester Tree Wardens' tree recording project)

... info. to follow

May

early, check dates each year

National Hedgerow Week

Join with Hedgelink project partners to celebrate and raise awareness of the importance of hedgerows during this hedgerow focus week and beyond.
Visit the website to catch up on last year's free webinars; learn how to grow a hedge from seed; manage an existing hedge; plant a hedge and more.

Consider: contributing to the People's Trust for Endangered Species' Great British Hedgerow Survey.

May

mid, check dates each year

"The Urban Tree Festival is an annual, community celebration of trees: their benefits and beauty, their majesty and magic, in cities, towns and all urban environments. Events, celebrations, walks, talks and storytellings are held across London and the UK, bringing all our communities together to share their enjoyment of trees and nature."

Explore the UTF website to find events that you can access, and/or stage an event of your own.

May

check date each year (24th in 2024)

Outdoor Classroom Day: "Outdoor Classroom Day is a global movement to inspire and celebrate outdoor play and learning, at home and at school. On Outdoor Classroom Day itself, which has two dates each year, teachers celebrate with a special day outdoors for their class."

Outdoor Classroom Day is promoted by outdoor learning and play charity Learning through Landscapes in the UK and Ireland. (LtL helps teachers take learning outdoors by providing ideas and activities developed by teachers and early years educators for curriculum-led outdoor learning, as well as Forest Kindergarten and Forest School. Its free resources can be filtered by age group and/or curriculum subject/play.)

May, 1st to 31st

Trees Love Care campaign continues (until 23rd September).

June

check dates each year

The Great Big Green Week by the Climate Coalition offers schools' resources to use throughout the summer term. Not tree-specific, but another opportunity to include them.

June, July, August

Trees Love Care campaign continues (until 23rd September).

ChiTrees (Chichester Tree Wardens' tree recording project) continues (until leaf fall).

Throughout the year

Contribute records to Nature's Calendar (budburst, first leaf, first flower, fruit ripe, first tint, full tint, leaf fall, bare tree) to take part in a citizen science project which germinated in 1736 and helps us understand how nature is affected by weather and climate change. You can view your records instantly on its live maps and compare them to others around the UK.

The tree species recorded are:

• alder
• ash
• beech
• European larch
• field maple
• horse chestnut
• oak, pedunculate
• oak, sessile
• rowan
• silver birch
• sycamore.

You may like to keep your own records of other trees? What happens when? Similarities and differences? From year to year?

Young Tree Champions

"The Tree Council’s flagship educational programme for schools; designed by teachers, for teachers. The Young Tree Champions programme supports schools to embark on impactful nature-based projects that connect pupils and teachers to trees and nature, helping them to develop the knowledge, skills and tools they need to speak up to protect trees and our planet."

Chichester Tree Wardens are part of the West Sussex Tree Wardens Network, in turn part of the national network of volunteer Tree Wardens run by The Tree Council and set up over 30 years ago.

Arboricultural Association

The Arboricultural Association's excellent free webinars with expert guest speakers are recorded and available online, at least for a limited period. Aimed at tree professionals and interested adults, teachers and older children may find them of interest too. Explore the Archive and/or its YouTube channel, where you can also find short clips.

Forestry England

Forestry England's free educational resources are "curriculum-linked, cover core subjects and are easily adaptable". Download activity sheets, lesson plans or bigger teaching packs: link from here. Also resources for Forest Visits (self-led) including sample Risk Assessments. Our nearest suggested forest visit is at Alice Holt (Farnham, GU10 4LS) roughly an hour's drive away, part of which is Britain's first Research Forest.

It also offers a free downloadable Gruffalo Party Pack - inspiration for a woodland-based birthday party. The pack has everything from printable invites and a Gruffalo-themed picnic menu to traditional games reimagined to celebrate the Gruffalo's 25th birthday in 2024.

Learning Through Landscapes

Learning through Landscapes helps teachers take learning outdoors by providing ideas and activities developed by teachers and early years educators for curriculum-led outdoor learning, as well as Forest Kindergarten and Forest School. Its free resources can be filtered by age group and/or curriculum subject/play and there are additional benefits from membership.

LtL also promotes Outdoor Classroom Day in the UK as part of a global movement to inspire and celebrate outdoor play and learning, at home and at school, which is included in November and May in Trees and the School Year above.

Natural History Museum

The NHM is a huge online resource, best searched to see what it may have on what you're interested in (and what you stumble across in the process). Examples include UK Tree Identification Guide (a great introduction to using Keys); a Guide to Lichens on Twigs; and The best small trees, climbers and shrubs to plant for wildlife. Its Nature Recording Hub has all you need to understand how to get involved with wildlife monitoring, including resources for Activity Days and a Survey Calendar.

PlantLife

PlantLife's charitable mission is to secure a world rich in wild plants and fungi. Its activities and discussion guides include Lichens (ages 7-11); Bryophytes (mosses and liverworts); Ferns; and identifying UK rainforests (family activity).

Sussex Wildlife Trust

Wildcall - a free service to answer any questions you have about wildlife in Sussex. Submit your question by 'phone or email. (For example, a Chichester Tree Warden, preparing a Tree Spotters' Challenge sheet for an event asked "why do snails climb trees?".)

Woodland Trust

The vision of the UK's largest woodland conservation charity is a world where woods and trees thrive for people and nature. Its Things to Do in the Woods webpage is a useful starting point.

This delicious ‘Forest-floor Tray Bake’ from the RSPB’s teen magazine, Wingbeats, is included here with their permission. Wingbeats is for RSPB members aged 13 – 18 and shares youth voices, tips for helping local wildlife, and the latest news and stories on nature and climate change as well as upcycling ideas and tasty recipes. To find out more about the kinds of RSPB membership and how to join, please visit: https://www.rspb.org.uk/join-and-donate/join-us/youth-membership/ .

Forestry England's Tree Trumps print-and-play game offers the chance to think about 29 different types of tree: how long they live; how high they grow; how many insect species they're associated with; their timber value; and "climb- ability". Each card includes illustrations of characteristic tree and leaf shapes, and two tree facts. Download it from here.

Great for independent play with a purpose (e.g. a wet playtime indoors) or use to prompt further learning. We laminated ours and they're holding up well.

Consider: which trees featured can you find in your school grounds? Which trees are missing? Why might this be? (Clue: what is Forestry England's role?) Can you make up additional cards for the missing trees? How might you find the information you need?

And/or how do your school's actual trees compare with the trees illustrated and scores on the cards?

Tree Spotters' Challenge sheets (Chichester Tree Wardens)

A format devised for self-led observation of what's happening with the trees around us. Based on photographs within about 10 days of when the sheets will be used at the location where they will be used. Find examples of aspects pictured, make comparisons, ask lots of questions!

Consider: creating your own Tree Spotters' Challenge to share with your school community. From tree types, roots, bark, buds, leaves, flowers, fruit to associated plants and creatures (and their homes) and man-made features (e.g. stakes and ties, uses for wood, commemorative plaques) - share what you enjoy or makes you curious.

Spot the Difference

(Chichester Tree Wardens)

Trees are a long-term endeavour, growing to fill spaces and views, changing views (and our experience of space) when they fall, or are felled. These examples of then and now were created by Chichester Tree Wardens for an Earth Day event by The Novium museum held in Priory Park in 2023.

Consider: find an old photograph, e.g. of your school grounds or local area, and try to take a modern photograph of the same view. Spot the differences and

Tree Trails

(Chichester Tree Wardens)

... to be continued ...

Consider: which trees would you like to draw attention to in your school grounds? Who would you like to notice them? Create a route for your trail and an explanatory leaflet and invite your "guests" to explore.

more entries to follow ...

... work in progress 19th December 2023 (page created 2nd July 2023).

Goodwood Estate

Various publicly accessible walks, including Seeley Copse, home of the Goodwood Education Trust (which offers both woodland and farm visits).

Kingley Vale

(Natural England - National Nature Reserve)

"The reserve contains one of the finest yew forests in western Europe, including a grove of ancient trees which are among the oldest living things in Britain." Also plantation forestry. Information on website and Facebook.

Maybush Copse

(Chichester Harbour Trust)

At Nutbourne. Community Woodland with programme of events supported by volunteers - see Parish Council website and Facebook. Short video also available on the Woodland Trust website as a case study: "Green spaces encourage more social interaction and a stronger sense of community. Maybush Copse Friends group has completely transformed a landscape to create a space for the local community to enjoy.".

Nore Barn Woods

Just west of Emsworth. Also fabulous coastal trees. Information on the Friends of Nore Barn Woods website.

Slindon Woods

(National Trust)

Part of the National Trust's Slindon Estate.

Stansted Forest

(Stansted Park Foundation)

Extensive remnant ancient forest and working woodland, alongside parkland, farm, stately home and complementary uses. Informative website that includes a useful walking route from Rowlands Castle rail station (2 miles). Occasional notices from the Head Forester found in the forest explain the management that you can see, and his #ForestryFriday posts on Stansted Park's Facebook page are a delight.

West Dean Woods

(West Dean Estate, part Sussex Wildlife Trust reserve)

Content to follow.

Worms Wood

(Woodland Trust)

Worms Wood is a 13 hectare (32 acre) native broadleaf woodland, created in early 2000 as part of the Woodland Trust's Woods on Your Doorstep (WOYD) Millennium Project. It is situated on the northern edge of Middleton-on-Sea. More information on the Woodland Trust's website here.