A Season in Review: Reflecting on Protect Earth's Tree Planting Achievements in 2022/23

As we look forward to a new planting season starting soon, it's time to reflect on the 2022/2023 planting season and share what was achieved.

Protect Earth is dividing its time between planting trees and hedgerows during the winter months and trying to preserve the nascent plants in the summer by laying mulch mats.

In this season-end summary, we'll talk about our planting journey this last year, shedding light on the numbers we planted, the range of native species we planted, and a breakdown of which areas of the UK saw us most active.

So, let's embark on this green recap and celebrate the strides we've made and the roots we've laid!

How many plants Protect Earth planted in the 2022/ 23 season

Protect Earth’s Chair, Phil Sturgeon, pleased with growth!

In the 2022/23 season, Protect Earth reached a remarkable milestone, planting 25,671 trees and shrubs!

This is a testament to Protect Earth's unwavering commitment to creating a greener and healthier environment in the UK. Each new plant in the ground takes us a step closer to enhancing the UK's biodiversity. The work we do, in partnership with landowners and farmers, can make a difference for people and communities. Our work can naturally improve soil quality so a farmer can produce more crops naturally. Our work can provide natural and beautiful spaces for communities to enjoy clean, fresh air and get immediate benefits.

The 25k+ planted wasn't done by Protect Earth alone. There were professionals and volunteers who worked hard along with us.

Shining a spotlight on our planting accomplishments

In the 2022/23 season, we at Protect Earth have reached new heights in our reforestation efforts, planting an impressive array of 35 different tree species. This diversity is not just about numbers.

Protect Earth only plant native species. These are the plants that naturally occurred for 10s of thousands of years. They are acclimated and work well with other native plants. In short, they don't cause problems! The range of plants we have used is designed to balance ecosystems, creating enough resilience to support a wide range of wildlife.

We're excited to reveal the three most dominant species that made up our planting schedule for the season.

The English Oak takes pride of place in our lineup, with 1,845 of these majestic trees planted, making up 7.19% of our total planting effort. But, the Oak had company with the closely trailing Hornbeam, an attractive, hardy species that we planted 1,879 times, accounting for 7.32% of our planting feat.

And, drumroll, please… the star of the show was the Hawthorn. This versatile, wildlife-supporting species stole the limelight with us planting a whopping 3,229 Hawthorn trees, which equated to a significant 12.58% of all trees we planted this season.

Hawthorn is a natural leader because of its versatility as both a tree and a hedge. We planted Hawthorn to be a part of woodland projects and in hedgerows. Planting different green spaces, from woodlands to wildflower meadows and hedgerows, achieves strong biodiversity.

Distribution of planting projects by region

The 2022/23 season saw Protect Earth propagating its green footprint across seven distinctive regions in the UK.

The distribution of projects spanned from the East Midlands, North East, and Northern England, each accounting for 5.26% of the total initiatives.

Doubling that, the East of England hosted 10.53% of our planting projects.

The South East region embraced 15.79% of our projects.

Wales, with 21.05%, was our second most active region for planting projects in the 2022/23 season. The crown, however, goes to the South West, where a whopping 36.84% of our planting projects took root.

What else did Protect Earth do during the 2022/23 season

Planting in excess of 25k saplings certainly wasn't all that kept us busy.

Although the summer wasn't as regularly scorching as last summer, our young saplings were still vulnerable to basically what amounts to heat exhaustion. To protect them, we laid 3,000 mulch mats.

With our focus being habitat protection and restoration, we have been removing non-native conifers from our ancient woodland, so that native species can flourish there once again. Native species are the most adept at forming an effective ecosystem, with habitats and food sources for the wildlife that evolved and found a home here in the UK. Our work parties removed several acres of young conifers, rescuing countless native saplings that would have been shaded out otherwise. Our forestry contractors removed over 900 tonnes of large conifers, helping create light and space for natural regeneration to recreate the conditions of a temperate rainforest - as High Wood once was.

Lastly, another success celebrated in 2022/23 was the acquisition of Goytre Wood - 70 acres of land in an Atlantic Oak Woodland region on the Welsh-English border.

To sum up

In the 2022/23 planting season, Protect Earth made significant strides in our ongoing commitment to environmental conservation through numerous habitat restoration projects. These initiatives spanned various locations, showcasing a diverse range of plant species. We are pleased to report that our collective efforts have resulted in planting an impressive number of trees - over 25k.

Our success wouldn't have been possible without our stakeholders' continued support and commitment. We sincerely thank all landowners who generously provided spaces for our projects. To our donors, your financial contributions have been invaluable, directly contributing to every sapling planted.

We also want to thank our dedicated volunteers, both corporate and individuals, whose tireless efforts ensured the successful implementation of our planting projects.

Finally, to those who have enjoyed the green spaces we created this season, your appreciation and use of these spaces is a big part of the reasons for doing this.

As we look forward to the upcoming planting season, we invite you to join us in volunteering to protect and restore natural habitats all over the UK. Whether you're an individual wanting to contribute your time at an event, a corporate group looking to organise a tree-planting initiative, or a landowner wishing to enhance biodiversity, we welcome and value your involvement. 

Landowners, if you're keen on transforming your land into a thriving natural habitat, please reach out to us – we're always eager to discuss potential projects. 

If you can donate, know that every pound raised goes towards planting and caring for Protect Earth's green spaces.