Lancashire's living memorial
At Darwen, on a hill visible from the M65, over 140 people braved the weather on Saturday (November 26) to begin the task of planting 37 acres of farmland to create Polyphemus Wood which will be open to the public. The site was kindly gifted to the Woodland Trust by the late Tom Bailey.
It was all in aid of the Woodland Trust’s Trafalgar Woods project. To mark the bicentenary of the Battle of Trafalgar, the Trust, the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity, is creating 33 woods – each named after a ship in Nelson’s fleet. The project aims to recognise the important role timber played in our maritime history and to honour the 631 Lancashire sailors who fought.
Mrs Pamela Williams, descendant of William Jacob, a member of Polyphemus’ crew, came along to plant some trees and the Lancashire Army Cadet Force were also out in numbers to help to establish the new wood, in addition to many local residents and Woodland Trust supporters.
The event was also special for John and Claire Jordan and their two daughters Katie, aged three, and two-year-old Daisy. Mr and Mrs Jordan, from Denby Dale, dedicated two acres of the new wood to their daughters and were delighted that they were able to help plant it.
Mr Jordan says: ”For years I had always wanted to plant some woodland and watch it grow. I had become concerned about global warming and I started to think if it might be possible to go 'carbon neutral'.
“Then my daughters came along and I figured the girls were far more likely to see any new woodland grow to maturity than I was - so it would be great if I could involve them in the project.
“The site is close to an urban area that has little natural woodland around it - the local children will have a great place to play and explore once the trees start to grow. Added to this, the Woodland Trust will be involving hundreds of children in the actual planting - which will be a great introduction to the importance of trees and the preservation of woodland for the next generation(s).”
Organiser Sara Lyons of the Woodland Trust said: “Thank you to the Jordan family and everyone else who turned out to help us plant Polyphemus Wood - I hope they watch its development with interest. With around 1000 trees planted at the event and more planted by local school children earlier in the week we’ve made a great start to creating the wood and we hope that people will join us again next year to plant some more!”
The Trust’s Trafalgar Woods Project is part of the charity’s Tree For All initiative which will see one million children plant 12 million trees over the next five years in the hope of engaging younger generations with nature.
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For media enquiries contact:
The Woodland Trust Press Office on 01476 581121, email: media@woodland-trust.org.uk
The Woodland Trust: The Woodland Trust is the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity. It has 300,000 members and supporters. The Trust has four key aims: i) No further loss of ancient woodland; ii) Restoring and improving the biodiversity of woods; iii) Increasing new native woodland; iv) Increasing people’s understanding and enjoyment of woodland.
Established in 1972, the Woodland Trust now has over 1,000 sites in its care covering approximately 20,000 hectares (50,000 acres). Access to its sites is free. Further news can be found at www.woodland-trust.org.uk
