Triumph for trees as National Park’s huge planting scheme edges closer to target

More than 20,000 tree plantings and a new woodland the size of five football pitches are part of a major nature recovery drive this winter by the South Downs National Park. Among the tree planting efforts will be over 400 new disease-resistant elms, helping to return the iconic English elm to the South Downs landscape after it was decimated by disease.

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As National Tree Week gets under way, scores of trees are going into the ground at 20 new sites across Sussex and Hampshire. The 20,294 trees being planted this winter bring the Trees for The Downs initiative ever closer to smashing its target of planting 100,000 trees by the middle of this decade. The total is currently almost 75,000 and the National Park hopes to reach the target as it marks its 15th birthday next year.

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Some 20 sites across the length and breadth of the National Park are benefitting from tree planting thanks to Trees for the Downs, which launched five years ago and is led by the South Downs National Park Trust, the official charity for the National Park.

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The tree planting is creating new habitat for wildlife, amenity value for local communities and increasing carbon storage to help mitigate climate change and improve soil quality. The trees are a mixture of disease-resistant elm trees and native species, such as oak and black poplar, and sites include schools, farms, recreation grounds and historic parks. There are early signs that nature is bouncing back in some places, thanks to the new trees.

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The planting this year has been made possible by a number of generous donations from the public and donors, including Boomtown – whose support has funded more than half of the trees with planting focused at sites in and around the festival. Support has also come from American Express Foundation, South East Water, Sykes Cottages, University of Sussex, and the London to Brighton EV Rally.

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In addition to the 20,294, the Trust has supported the creation of 3.42 hectares of new woodland at Rough House Farm, Elsted, West Sussex. Up to 4,500 trees are also being planted over two years in the Hampshire Hangers, which run between Farnham and Petersfield, as part of landscape enhancements led by National Grid.

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In order to hit the 100,000 target, the South Downs National Park Trust is inviting expressions of interest for tree planting for the winter of 2025/2026. To make an application for potential tree planting next year, visit the SDNP website.

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Follow this link to donate!

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