The Tree Council’s Diamond Jubilee Celebration Project 2012-13
In 2002, we asked you to tell us of 50 trees from around the country with a story that made them Great British Trees; we celebrated them in a book presented to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in honour of her Golden Jubilee. Now we are in the year of the Diamond Jubilee and this time, we want you to be part of our Diamond Jubilee Celebration Project 2012-13 and plant the next generation of trees but with a story that hasn’t been written yet. We have 60 Jubilee Diamond Trees to give away to start this narrative
The project also nods to the link between trees and the formation of diamonds from carbon, some of which will be from trees that grew billions of years ago and were buried deep in the earth’s mantle. By planting trees, we are planting diamond in the raw, planting with hope for the future as well as respect for the past.
What can you do?
We are looking for 60 inspirational Tree Wardens from around the UK, who want to work with a generation of local children who can expect to see the tree mature in 60 years’ time, to take up our offer of a Jubilee Diamond Tree to plant at the centre of their community. We will provide you with your chosen standard tree, in a 45-65 litre container, with stakes, ties and a commemorative plaque which will include information such as the name of the Tree Warden and the community and a QR barcode which, when read using smartphones, redirects users to a web page on which we will tell your story of the planting of the tree.
So, all you have to do now is tell us where you want to put your tree and how children under 16 – as well as any adults who want to take part, of course – will be part of the story (see application form below). You will be responsible for the run-up, the digging of the hole, planting and appropriate guards as well as the care needed to ensure the tree survives to become a future Green Monument.
How can your tree become part of history?
We want the trees we give away to be valued as part of the community by generations to come and so we are looking for Tree Wardens who will use the planting events to create a bit of local history. We want to tell your story and make it available for anyone to read about and will be making a book of all the planting stories to formally present to Her Majesty as well as dedicating pages of our website to an online version.
You might want to apply for a Jubilee Diamond Tree for a ceremonial planting by local children with a member of the Royal family or the Lord Lieutenant (the Queen’s local representative) of the County. Maybe there will be someone locally who remembers the planting of a tree for another royal occasion such as the coronation of King George VI, the father of our Queen. You could invite them to share their memories with a younger generation. Perhaps there are people in your community who were born, married or who met on Accession Day or Coronation Day, who may have an interesting story to tell. It’s conceivable that you will find all sorts of other parallels or connections between local people and the monarch as you set about planning for a Jubilee Diamond Tree to be planted in your community. These are the stories that we want to capture and put together, in words and pictures, as a Diamond Jubilee gift for Her Majesty.
Where, when and what?
You decide who is involved in the project and why their contribution is important; all we ask is that you plant the tree somewhere public such as parish or local authority land, in a public park, common or school grounds. Ideally, we would like planting to take place in National Tree Week 2012 (24th November to 2nd December) although we can be flexible to take account of local needs; the trees must, however, be in the ground by the end of the tree planting season (end of March 2013).
Tree Wardens are invited to complete the short application form below and submit it as soon as possible. We will let the successful applicants know and give them further instructions, including how to choose their tree from our friends at Barchams, using their new service that allows you to see a video that shows the tree height, shape, quality and health and to select the actual plant that you will be supplied with (www.buythetreeyousee.com).
How to apply for this project?
Please note that this project is only open to applications from Tree Wardens. Applications are now being accepted on a rolling basis, to a maximum of 60. Please click here for an application form.
