"Promoting Personal Excellence"
ECO - SCHOOLS
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www.woodlandtrust.org.uk |
St. Patrick’s College Student Council and pupils from St. Canice’s Primary School recently joined forces with the Woodland Trust, the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity, to plant a native copse in their school grounds. The trees and shrubs are all native broadleaved which means, that with a little luck, they will be growing on well into the next century – when the children’s grandchildren will be able to inspect their handiwork.
It’s all part of the Woodland Trust’s "More Trees, More Good" campaign – the largest tree-planting mission the UK has ever seen. Launched in 2010, the project aims to facilitate the planting of 20 million native trees a year for the next 50 years. It’s hoped that through the simple act of planting trees, children will grow up with a respect for the environment.
Paul Bunton of the Woodland Trust says: “Even schools with quite small grounds will often be able to accommodate one of our hedge or copse packs which can inspire children to really get in touch with nature and learn about the ecology of these wonderful habitats.
The thirty trees were planted on St. Patrick’s College grounds at various sites selected by the Student Council. The primary six pupils and their teachers were given five trees from the pack to plant at their own school. An enjoyable morning was had by all involved with future collaboration on other projects eagerly anticipated.
For many of these children, this was the first time they had ever planted a tree. Educating today’s children about the benefit of looking after our environment will help protect the forests of tomorrow. The More Trees, More Good campaign will hopefully make a lasting impact on our landscape - with the help of our young people.
