Hampshire gained its first school mini ‘Miyawaki’ forest this year, at The Federation of Trosnant Schools in Havant. An underused patch of the school’s grounds was transformed with the help of the school children, teachers and local volunteers. Across two days, one thousand young trees were planted across an area around the size of a tennis court, with every child at the school having the opportunity to plant at least one tree.
The mix of trees included species that will grow into three different sizes, which will develop a structural diversity with different layers in the woodland. These included oak in the top canopy layer, whitebeam and wild cherry in the mid shrub layer and hawthorn and dogwood in the lower shrub layer. This mix will provide food and habitat for a diverse array of wildlife across the seasons, providing a fantastic space for the school and also local nature.
Trees from 15 UK native species were planted with students of Trosnant School.
Before planting, volunteers from the Havant Borough Tree Wardens, along with Hampshire Forest Partnership staff prepared the area by reducing the grass and rotavating the soil. The Miyawaki Forest technique usually involves more intensive soil preparation, however this mini forest was to be planted within an existing tree ring, so we wanted to ensure no damage to the standing trees’ roots. Rotavating the soil offered a solution, enabling us to mix in soil conditioner to improve aeration and nutrients, but without risking the existing trees’ health.
A local tree surgeon provided mulch for us to lay on the soil around the newly planted trees, forming a thick layer to help retain moisture and reduce weed growth. Some weeds have started to appear, so a period of maintenance for the next two-three years will be required, where weeds will be removed and mulch topped up as needed. With this year’s very wet winter, the trees have had a good start with plenty of water, but if we have dry spells later this summer, then the new trees may need some watering.
A low fence was installed around the mini forest to protect the young trees from flying footballs!
Trees planted using the Miyawaki method grow faster than in traditional tree planting techniques due to the soil preparation and dense planting (3-5 trees per square metre), and this new mini forest will provide fantastic learning opportunities for the Trosnant school children. We can’t wait to see how it progresses!
Would you like to plant a mini ‘Miyawaki’ forest in your local area? Get in touch at [email protected].