AN ARBOREAL giveaway in Ashburton has been heralded a tree-mendous success by organisers.
Ashburton Trees had 260 saplings to give away at the town hall last Saturday. The locally grown native species included oak rowan, hawthorne wild cherry
‘It was amazing and we had an overwhelming response,’ said one of the event’s organisers Ian Pickvance.
‘We had a queue of people waiting at 10am and by 12.30 all the saplings had been taken.’
The tree giveaway was not about fundraising but more about awareness.
‘I have been trying to get more trees planted in Ashburton for a while,’ continued Ian.
‘The Tree Giveaway is a great way to get more people interested in planting trees and to enthuse, particularly children, in the future of their environment.’
The event was supported by Devon Wildlife Trust and the Devon Treescapes Project.
Their advisory officer, Jon Freeman, attended the event and was also pleased at the response from the public.
‘Events like this are very important as it helps gets the message across of how important tress are to the environment and the crucial habitats they provide for so much wildlife ‘ he said.
‘The enthusiasm from the public to get out and get planting was brilliant.’
Saving Devon’s Treescapes aims to support local communities to plant and nurture a quarter of a million trees across the county over the next five years ,with a particular focus on trees outside of woodlands.