Wildway Bushcraft Tree Planting Promise
Wildway Bushcraft is proud to announce our tree planting promise!
Everyone who works here at Wildway Bushcraft loves trees, we love wild places, it’s why we do what we do. As the chief instructor here at Wildway Bushcraft I feel a huge responsibility to take care not just of the woods that we use for courses but also woodland throughout the UK. More and more pressure is being put on our native woodland by development and urban sprawl and we wanted to do our bit to help. This is why we have developed a tree planting promise.
What is this tree planting promise?
Well, Wildway Bushcraft will be planting a tree for every person who attends any of our courses or expeditions, not just any old tree, we don’t want to see rows upon rows of pine in some unnatural block of plantation somewhere. We will be planting and growing, broadleaf trees like Oak, Sweet Chestnut, Beech and Hornbeam so that future generations will have access to the same wonderful woodlands as we have.
The aim has to be to enhance the woodlands we have by planting native or naturalised species in habitats that already exist. It takes hundreds of years for the biodiversity of woodlands to develop and thrive on its own so this is why we have chosen to start with planting in established woodlands that have been neglected.
Will this increase the price of courses?
No, this tree planting promise is our idea, course prices will not increase because of this. All the costs involved with the tree planting will come directly from profits made by Wildway Bushcraft. Wildway Bushcraft uses the woods and forests to run courses and as such we will be planting these trees to give back in the best way we can think of.
Where will we be planting these trees?
To start with all the trees will be planted in Dorset. We have access to an overgrown woodland that once was an old copse that has not been worked for a very long time. We are in the process of clearing the woodland of all the weak and rotting trees to make space for the healthy ones as well as the new saplings. In the future, we intend to start offering sapling trees to other bushcraft companies so they can replant sites as well as charity organisations that carry out this sort of work.
Why is planting trees so important?
Planting trees is one of the best things we can do to help take care of our planet and combat the effects of climate change. Global warming is happening at a faster rate than ever before so we need to work together to make our planet a healthier place.
Trees are incredible in many ways, they are especially great at reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) in our atmosphere. Rising CO2 levels, due to increased carbon emissions, is the main cause of climate change and is having a negative effect on the health of our entire planet, so one of the many things that we can do to help is to plant more trees. As the trees help to reduce the levels of carbon dioxide this then results in improved air quality which is better for our own health as well as the planet.
Trees also help to regulate our planet’s temperature too. Greenhouse gases are trapping more heat into the earth’s atmosphere which is causing temperatures to rise globally. This means our polar ice caps are melting at an alarming rate, this results in rising sea levels and increased flood risks which wipe out homes and habitats. Trees help to combat this by absorbing carbon dioxide from our earth’s atmosphere. The trees then use CO2 in the process of photosynthesis and evaporate water into the atmosphere which acts to cool the air and assist a healthy water cycle.
An increase in trees and areas of woodland would also benefit our wildlife population too, as more trees mean more homes and food sources for our wildlife species. The increased rate of building over the past few decades due to our increasing population has sadly caused an increase in habitat loss. This habitat loss has resulted in falling numbers of many wildlife species. By taking care of existing woodland as well as planting more trees and forest areas we will be providing healthier habitats and encouraging wildlife to flourish again.
Trees also help to reduce flooding. We have seen an alarming increase in flooding over the last few decades, this has been linked to reduced areas of woodland and increased areas of non-permeable surfaces such as concrete.
Trees consume a large amount of water through their root systems, therefore, helping to regulate water levels and reduce the chance of excess surface water and increased risks of flooding.
Another of the many benefits of having plenty of trees is that healthy trees help to keep soil nutrient-rich which means that our soil will remain more fertile. This then provides optimum growing conditions for other plant species around the trees which encourages greater biodiversity for both plant and wildlife species alike.
So I think you’ll agree, it’s not just that we love trees, but we all very much need trees and lots of them! Every single one of us. So let’s work together, help our planet, help our wildlife and help each other too, so let’s get planting!