A tree-planting initiative to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee has been extended to allow people to plant trees as a memorial to the monarch.
The Queen’s Green Canopy (QGC) scheme was launched to encourage people to “Plant a tree for the Jubilee” from the start of the tree-planting season in October 2021 through to the end of 2022, to mark her 70 years on the throne.
It has now been extended to include the full autumn-to-spring tree planting season, concluding at the end of March 2023, to give people the opportunity to plant trees in the Queen’s memory.
More than a million trees were planted for the project during the first planting season of the Platinum Jubilee year, from October 2021 to March 2022, by communities, schools, organisations and individuals.
The scheme also dedicated 70 irreplaceable ancient woodlands across the UK and 70 ancient trees to celebrate the monarch’s seven decades on the throne.
In a statement, the scheme’s organisers said: “Following the wishes of our patron, His Majesty The King, the Queen’s Green Canopy (QGC) initiative will be extended to the end of March 2023 to give people the opportunity to plant trees in memoriam to honour Her Majesty.
“The Queen’s Green Canopy is proud to be creating a living legacy, with over a million trees planted in Her Majesty’s name across the nation during the first planting season, October 2021 to March 2022.
“The extension of the QGC initiative will build on this legacy and serve as a lasting tribute to Her Majesty’s extraordinary service to her country and her people.”
Trees and woods dedicated to the Queen as a part of the scheme include 12,000 trees planted to help “re-nature” the South Downs National Park, an underwater kelp forest in Plymouth Sound National Marine Park, and an urban woodland in Bradford.
Burley House in Stamford, Lincolnshire, was the first of the 70-acre Platinum Jubilee Woods announced, with new woodland in the grounds of the 16th century Elizabethan mansion, while the Queen and the then Prince of Wales planted trees at Windsor Castle and Balmoral to mark the scheme.
The Earl of Wessex even planted a tree in Aberdare National Park in Kenya, close to the Treetops Hotel where the 25-year-old Princess Elizabeth was staying at the historic moment she became Queen.
As well as the extension of the initiative, the interactive map created by the Queen’s Green Canopy to showcase planting projects across the UK will continue to the end of March 2023.
People can also donate a tree in memory of the Queen, which will be planted in schools and deprived areas across the UK.
A statement from the Woodland Trust, a leading partner in the project, said: “Her Majesty was known for her love of trees from a very early age, and we believe trees are the perfect way to commemorate her extraordinary life and pay tribute to her 70 years of dedicated service.
“The Woodland Trust is privileged to have created hundreds of new woods in celebration of the Queen’s Diamond and Platinum Jubilees, and are proud to support the Queen’s Green Canopy.”
For information on the QGC scheme, people can visit https://queensgreencanopy.org/
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