Eco Comment – Seed Gathering Season

22 September 2023

The 23rd September is the Autumn Equinox and the first day of the autumn season. It occurs when the sun passes the equator moving from the northern to the southern hemisphere. The North Pole begins to tilt away from the sun and day and night have approximately the same length. Gathering seeds is the perfect way to start the season of autumn. Everyone is encouraged to gather seeds, fruits and nuts in order to nurture the trees of the future.

The Tree Council started this initiative in 2000 as a way of getting local communities and families to start growing their own trees. ‘Trees and hedgerows do so much for us. They store carbon, reduce pollution, improve our health and more. By gathering seeds (and growing them into trees) you can make sure that our treescapes continue to thrive in the future.

“Seed gathering is fun, free and easy. Wherever you live, whatever your age, you can get involved. You don’t need to be a tree expert or have any special equipment – just a love of trees and nature and lots of enthusiasm!” – The Tree Council

The Tree Council produce a book ‘The Tree Grower’s Guide’ for those who would like to grow healthy trees from local seeds;  they also have a free downloadable seed guide and guide to spotting seeds. If you’re in any doubt, our local tree warden Roger Parkinson, who has a lovely YouTube clip, is the person to contact. There are several Woodland Trust YouTube videos about trees, but this one is well worth 9:47 minutes of your time. Roger is the chairman of the Tree Wardens Voluntary Group. This local group is a Woodland Trust Charter group working in partnership with Wakefield Council and others to educate people of all ages about all things tree. They have also run a local Urban Tree Festival.

Coincidentally, an email from Wakefield Council popped into my inbox today. The Wakefield Council Climate Action Team are asking for help collecting seeds for their Woodland Creation programme.  They are hoping to reforest Wakefield District by planting 3.25million trees by 2050. They have already planted nearly 100,000 trees and need the public’s help to plant another 600,000 over the next 5 years.

So, this weekend if you’d like some fresh air and fun, go and collect seeds, fruits (conkers) and nuts and contact WhiteRoseForest@wakfield.gov.uk for more information.

Susan Morgan
Eco Group

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