Avon Needs Trees is well on its way to buying a second piece of land in Wiltshire, to create new, permanent woodland.
The charity hopes to be in a position to buy the 19 acres in Seend in the spring, but needs a final burst of help. ANT already owns 34 acres at Ratford, near Calne, and – despite Covid – is busy planting 10,000 trees, improving biodiversity and planning public events and activities for the year to come.
Seend resident, Jo McManus, has stepped up to support Avon Needs Trees. She will be running 10 kilometres around local villages on Saturday 27th February – dressed as a tree! – with all sponsorship going to the charity.
“Several villagers have offered to help me make the costume,” says Jo. “It will have native wildlife in the branches so it promises to be a spectacular! “
You can find out more and sponsor her via her JustGiving page at https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/seendtrees
“We’re absolutely delighted that Jo’s taken on this challenge,” says Nikki Jones, chair of Avon Needs Trees. “If Covid restrictions allow, we’ll be there to cheer her on. We can’t wait to see the costume! Buying this land will benefit everyone in the Melksham area, so we do hope she gets lots of sponsorship. Many thanks – in advance – to everyone who contributes.”
Avon Needs Trees registered as a charity in July 2019. It aims to buy land in the Bristol-Avon catchment area to create new, permanent woodland through planting and rewilding. Its objectives are to lock-up carbon, improve local biodiversity, provide natural flood management, and publicly accessible green space. The 19 acres at Seend will be turned into a mix of woodland, community orchard, meadow and ponds.
