Tree planting at Hinton Ampner – Round 2

Event details

As part of their “Reimagining a Hampshire Estate” project, the National Trust will be planting 25,000 trees in the current planting cycle (December 2024 thru March 2025), and the same again the following year.  Where possible, given the numbers, all of the saplings are being locally sourced, and are mixture of large broadleaf trees and smaller trees such as Hawthorne, etc.

They’re very keen to have community engagement in this, which is where we come in.  Whilst they will be runing days where people can just volunteer to turn up and help with the planting, they’re also looking to organise planting days with local organisations such as ourselves, with teams of up to 30 people.  Ideally we would like to make this a monthly event during the planting season, but we’re using this as a pilot to see how we go.

Given we’ll be working out in the estate, which is thousands of acres, rather than by the house itself, the National Trust will be providing portaloos and refreshments, though we’ll need to take our own lunches if staying for the whole day.  They will also be providing all of the necessary tools.  We will only need to bring more if we’re happen to find more than 30 people, which will be a good problem to have.  Depending upon the exact location, we may be able to park next to the planting area we’re assigned, but if not, the plan will be to meet at the House car park and the National Trust will bus us to the exact site.  We’ll let you know the exact details nearer the time.

As we’ll be working during the darker months of the year, it is likely that we’ll only be working between say 9:00am and 4:00pm, though that may increase as we move into spring.  It is perfectly acceptable to just sign-up for half a day, e.g. 9:30-12:00, or 13:00-15:30, but please let us know if this is the case, so that we can ensure transport is covered for you.  We should aim to get there for about 9:00 so that we can be organised by the National Trust team and get in as much planting time as possible.

The work will involve:

• Planting the trees: Stakes and protective sleeves are already in place.  We just need to push the shovel / spade into the ground to create a slot, into which the saplings (Whips) will be placed, then heel into place.  For those who have helped us with the Cool Rivers project in the past, it is exactly the same technique.  Training will be provided on the day.
• Mulching: Around the base of each sapling.

What you will need to bring:

• Suitable footwear (Wellingtons, Sturdy boots, etc.)
• Gardening or other suitable gloves
• Clothing for the weather conditions
• Snacks and lunch if appropriate

If you have any questions, please add a comment to the event and we’ll respond.  That way everybody will be able to see the information.