Sponsoring New trees
Over the past two years 160 new trees have been planted in Cambridge through the national charity initiative, Trees for Streets. The project has brought together residents, local businesses, Cambridge City Council and Cambridge Canopy Project, to make our streets greener, healthier and happier places to live. By sponsoring trees, Cambridge locals have been able to help get trees in the ground
Green my street
Residents and local businesses have used the interactive map on the Trees for Streets website to pick locations where they’d like to see a new street tree planted. Many residents have asked to fill gaps outside their houses or elsewhere on their streets; some opt to sponsor a tree in their favourite park.
It’s a very simple process – once the request is received, Cambridge City Council conducts a survey to make sure there are no obstructions such as cables, pipes or utility covers. If all is ok, the sponsor’s donation is accepted and that coming winter the council’s contractor is instructed to plant a new street tree at the approved location.
Watering help
The single most expensive cost involved in planting and establishing a new tree is often the watering. It’s fantastic that so many residents have also taken on the job of watering their sponsored trees. This is a huge help and also a very rewarding activity, as it can offer opportunities for neighbours to get to know each other and feel more connected to their communities.
Local heroes
The Trees for Streets team met some of the wonderful local sponsors to catch up with them now that their tree is planted.
There are miles and miles of grass verges in Cambridge, and they are perfect for planting new trees. Eunice was delighted when she discovered that she could sponsor a new tree for the grass verge outside her house. And once a new tree appears on a street, other residents are often inspired to get involved too. Tom and his family sponsored a tree on their street after seeing their neighbour sponsor one the year before!
Often residents will come together to sponsor a tree. Jonathan and Jim live opposite each other and both value greenery in their neighbourhood; so they decided to sponsor a tree in the empty grass verge outside their homes.
…And in Local PArks and green spaces
Cambridge residents have also be..en filling their local parks with trees, with new trees sponsored in Midsummer Common, Sheep’s Green, Cherry Hinton Hall Park, Jesus Green and Lammas Land – to name a few!
Get a tree planted this winter
If you’d like to get involved in greening a local street in Cambridge, maybe outside your house, your children’s school or along a local high street, visit treesforstreets.org/cambridge today.
Sponsorship requests must be made by the end of November in order for trees to be planted this winter.
