Commemorative and Memorial Trees in Wokingham

Donated elms planted in Wokingham

To celebrate the Tree Warden Scheme’s 30th Anniversary in 2020 the Tree Council offered thirty elm trees for planting by Tree Wardens in their local network areas. With the support of the Wokingham Town and Charvil Parish Councils, Alison Griffin and Sarah Swatridge of the Wokingham Tree Warden Network (part of the WDVTA) submitted applications for trees to be planted in Elms Field and Charvil Country Park. Despite the Tree Council receiving significantly more than 30 applications nationwide the two WDVTA submissions were successful.

On the 14th January the two Tree Council elms were were planted and on the 15th the Wokingham Society tree was also planted in Elms Field.

Delivery and planting of the trees was delayed from November due to Covid restrictions. Planting ceremonies planned for January have now been cancelled for the time being.

The elm trees are Ulmus 'New Horizon'. They are expected to grow to a height of 12m with a canopy spread of 4.5m after 25 years. They are 100% resistant to Dutch elm disease, compatible with most soil types, resilient to urban conditions including waterlogging and will tolerate a wide range of temperatures. We have high hopes that they will become valued features of Wokingham's treescape in years to come.

Diamond Jubilee Oak Planting

Background to the Project

In June 2012 Wokingham Borough Council invited WDVTA to collaborate with the officers of the Trees and Landscape team to plant 60 standard English oak trees across the borough to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. Barbara Stagles agreed to act as WDVTA Jubilee Trees coordinator and enlisted the support of local volunteers as well as Oliver Ward and his team at Heartwood Tree Surgery.

The project proved a good opportunity to plant English oak trees in places where it was hoped they could grow to their full glory. Many splendid old trees had been lost in the borough in previous years and others faced threats from ground compaction by roads and paved areas, heavy pruning, and disease. It was thought important to try to compensate for these lost trees as far as possible as well as to enhance the local treescape. The new trees could also help remind people of Wokingham's history as part of Windsor Forest and give pleasure for decades, if not centuries.

The Sites

Some 50 suggestions for sites were received by a project team consisting of WDVTA members and WBC officers and, after careful consideration, it was decided that trees should be planted on 44 sites including public open spaces, churchyards, nature reserves, roadside verges and school. In four sites groups of three trees were to be planted and in five sites pairs of two. Care was taken to ensure the chosen sites were as well distributed across the borough as possible. This map shows their eventual positions.

Buying and Planting the Trees

The trees were bought in June 2012 from Barcham Trees, Cambridge and they were planted by Heartwood Tree Surgery, project subcontractors, in the winter of 2012/13. The firm was contracted to monitor and maintain the trees for five years. When planted the trees were between five and seven years old and almost 4 metres tall. Each tree was recorded in the Woodland Trust's Royal Record and was labelled with a numbered memorial plaque fixed to a wooden base. In subsequent years many of these bases became rotten so the plaques have been removed and stored. There are plans to install more resistant bases and return the plaques to the sites.

Planting Celebrations

During 2012/2013 planting ceremonies involving community groups took place in the 44 sites. The first ceremony was held at Wokingham Borough Council offices at Shute End on 24 November 2012 where the Mayor of Wokingham Borough, Councillor, Bob Wyatt, officiated. At the ceremony in Cantley Park in March 2013, Cllr David Lee, Leader of Wokingham Borough Council and initiator of the project, welcomed trees #59 and #60.

Records of Plantings

A Here is a table of all the planting events giving their locations, names of site owners and dates of ceremonies.

An interactive map of all the sites shows their locations, photographs, information about the plantings and subsequent developments concerning the trees.

WBC and WDVTA have published a Jubilee Oaks leaflet (download, print and fold) to commemorate the plantings.

Local Benefits of the Project

As well as the trees being widely welcomed for their own sake, the planting and associated events generated considerable community interest among voluntary groups and local residents. All the sites are attractive and environmentally valuable and many have an interesting history. The presence of the Jubilee trees may have encouraged people to visit previously unknown places and in some instances it has led to suggestions about further improvements to the sites, including ideas for additional tree planting, notably an extended avenue in Burnmoor Meadows, Finchampstead.

Jubilee Project Reviews

Five year review

In 2017 Barbara Stagles and Stephanie MacKay visited all the sites and the photos taken of the trees were added to the website. At this stage fifty seven of the trees were thriving. Two had been replaced courtesy of Barcham Trees. Tree #25 in Burnmoor Meadow, Finchampstead had a root canker and tree #47 in Swallowfield Recreation Ground had failed for no known reason. The replacements were doing well. One of the trees in Ashenbury Park #11 had died and it was thought this might have been related to soil contamination as the land had once been a rubbish tip. Investigations were started to obtain a replacement and plant it in another part of the park near where Jubilee trees #12 and #13 were flourishing.

Ten year review - report

In September and October 2022 Barbara Stagles and Stephanie Mackay carried out out an extensive survey of the trees and, with the help of Elaine Butler, WDVTA Data Manager, took photographs and updated the information held about the trees. This included their general condition, girth and height, crown shape and the condition of leaves, branches, trunks, bark and root cover. They observed the size and condition of acorns including their deformities and any oak galls. They recorded varieties of lichen growing on the trees and evidence of animal life such as ants and other creatures. Risk conditions were noted such as proximity to main roads, susceptibility to drought, animal damage, root compaction, invasions of other plants or vandalism including any changes to the sites since the planting.

At this stage 55 of the original trees were found to be thriving, though some trees were flourishing better than others. The observations raised interesting questions as to why these variations had occurred and whether other factors might be at play such as soil conditions or pollution. These questions, however, would require more detailed study.

One of the original trees, #15 in Bulmershe Park, Woodley, was in a very poor condition but was given additional care by Woodley Town Council grounds staff. It has now revived, and looked in much better condition in 2023.

Another tree, #18 in Winnersh Meadows, had been vandalised but a replacement tree was planted by WBC after the survey early in 2023.

The replacement in Swallowfield Recreation Ground had again failed so it was decided to plant a new young oak at a new site in Swallowfield Meadow. This small replacement tree, one of five purchased by WDVTA, was growing well at the time of the survey.

Happily the replacement trees for #26 in Burnmoor Meadow Finchampstead and #11 in Ashenbury Park, Woodley were both doing well.

The full report is here.