The CLA View
Regional Director Cath Crowther encourages members to get involved in the Queen's Green Canopy initiative
The Queen’s Green Canopy (QGC) initiative, under the patronage of The Prince of Wales, offers a unique opportunity for everyone in the UK to get involved in planting trees, copses, woods and avenues, in dedication to the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
The initiative, which was launched earlier this year at the virtual Chelsea Flower Show, is encouraging people to ‘Plant a Tree for the Jubilee’ to create a network of trees across Britain’s devolved administrations and counties.
CLA member Sir Nicholas Bacon chairs the QGC Board, which is supported by various organisations, including The Woodland Trust, Defra, Cool Earth, The Royal Horticultural Society, Trees for Cities and The Forest Canopy Foundation. Organisations such as charities, schools, scout groups, councils and landowners will all be involved in creating a lasting legacy in honour of the Queen’s leadership, which will also serve to enhance the environment and landscapes for generations to come.
The website www.queensgreencanopy.org gives advice and information on procuring and planting trees as well as caring for them. Participants can register and upload details of their plantings on a map, together with photographs. A map detailing all the plantings will be presented to Her Majesty at the end of the celebration. Commemorative plaques will also be available for purchase through the website. Alternatively, the plaque template can also be downloaded to make them locally available. We know that many of our members – who are a range of farmers, landowners and rural business are already thinking of planting trees. If that is the case it is possible to put a plaque up even if it’s a part of exiting sustainability project.
Mark Tufnell, CLA Deputy President, is a member of the Stewardship Advisory Committee to the QGC and is working with others to ensure that the message reaches as many as possible. All parish councils are being encouraged to participate, and Mark will be asking our members, and others who manage land, to join him in planting trees on their land to recognise The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. Mark is a keen advocate of improved woodland management on farms and estates and a supporter of the recognition of ancient woodlands, which will be achieved through the QGC dedication plan.
The planting of trees will start this October. Those taking part are encouraged to use ‘Plant Healthy’ nurseries where possible, otherwise people are encouraged to check the provenance of tress to mitigate the risk of disease. All trees for this initiative are sourced in the UK and Ireland and all plantings will follow the principles of ‘the right tree in the right place’ and ‘quality over quantity’.
The design of the unique QGC tree guards will reflect the importance of this Jubilee as trees represent a vital part of the landscape, particularly in the UK. The Jubilee celebrates the 70 years of service from Her Majesty. The period of time also reflects the time taken for trees to grow into a majestic form, either as a wood, avenue or individual tree.
The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Beacons
Plans are well underway to light 1,500 beacons at 9.15pm on 2 June 2022 to celebrate The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. This follows a long tradition in the UK of marking key royal events (jubilees, weddings and coronations) with the lighting of beacons. Many of our members have taken part in events to celebrate The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012, and also to celebrate her 90th birthday in 2016.
Beacons will be lit throughout the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man and UK Overseas Territories. For the first time, beacons will also be lit in each of the capital cities of the Commonwealth countries. Organisers are aiming to make the 2022 event the biggest and most spectacular one yet, and are appealing to landowners and farmers up and down the country to set up beacons on their property to ensure an impressive chain of blazes stretches across the UK.
Events can either be private or open to the public, but both type of event should be registered so that they can be recorded in a later publication to mark the occasion. You can find full details on how to get involved via www.queensjubileebeacons.com
After such a torrid time for us all due to the pandemic it is fantastic to be able to talk of something to celebrate and a reason to be cheerful. I encourage everyone to get involved.