Town wins big for community arboretum efforts

A small town has been crowned the overall winner of Britain's largest community gardening competition.

Stonehouse in Gloucestershire impressed Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Britain in Bloom judges with its efforts to create a community arboretum, with plans to achieve tree canopy coverage of 30% in the town by 2040.

Unlike a traditional arboretum, which is confined to a particular site, Stonehouse's community arboretum is defined by the town's boundaries and includes every tree, whether it is on public or private land.

Stonehouse in Bloom treasurer Debbie Curtis said the news was "beyond our wildest dreams".

Curtis said the Community Arboretum Management Plan was set up a few years ago.

There is now a trail in Stonehouse comprising of 21 trees, which visitors can follow to learn more about each one.

"We've got one on the green which is a London Plane tree, one of three trees which come from the Bishop's Palace in Ely," Ms Curtis said.

"There's one of those specimens at Sandringham, one at Kew Gardens and one in Stonehouse High Street."

Residents and volunteers have played an active role in maintaining the trees, of which 49 have been planted.

Stonehouse in Bloom secured a RHS Gold and also won in the Small Town category for which it was entered, going on to be crowned Overall Winner.

Darren Share, chair of the Britain in Bloom judges, said: "It's fantastic to see how much the group is investing in its urban forest and the real community effort behind it."

Following the win, Curtis said: "There's the old saying that the best time to plant a tree is 10 years ago.

"Many of these trees we won't see grow to maturity, but it's a kind of legacy and a huge privilege to be able to plant that for the town in which we live."

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