Guided Tree Walk in Lipson Looking at Street Tree Decline

Many Plymouth streets were once lined with avenues of trees planted by the Victorians who understood their true value. Sadly, these ‘living lungs’ of our city are rapidly dwindling.

Urban trees are seen by some who live amongst them as an irritation and many a Council Tree Officer will have heard the words “I like trees but…”. The truth is, although there are inevitable drawbacks, street trees are an essential part of our urban environment and are a living solution to many of the problems we face in adapting to climate change.

This walk and talk will look at some of the remaining Victorian tree avenues and will visit locations where trees once stood to show that when you know what to look for, evidence of their presence remains.

We will look at the many challenges remaining street trees face and how now more than ever, there is an urgent need to take action to prioritise replanting those that have been lost. Part of this talk will also look at the many difficulties of replanting trees in such a tough environment for trees.

Jonathan Warren has worked for over 30 years as an Arboriculturist in the UK and Australia. As well as advising on or overseeing the management of urban trees, he has spent a lot of time promoting the many benefits they provide. He has worked as a Local Authority Tree Officer, an Arboricultural Consultant and more recently as the Senior Urban and Community Officer at Forest for Cornwall.

Zoë worked as an arborist for over a decade in situations ranging from housing estates to royal parks. She then qualified as a landscape architect, involved in assessment, planning and construction of infrastructure projects. She is currently an advisor with Westcountry Rivers Trust, supporting farmers and other landowners with tree planting and other nature based solutions.

Our event will start at Freedom Fields Park in Lipson, by the cafe. From here we will explore nearby streets and finish in Beaumont Park.

The event starts at 10:30 am and will last for approximately 2 hours.