Residents asked to plant acorns for seedling collection.
The charity that looks after Milton Keynes’ parks and woodlands has launched an appeal to residents to help them grow new trees for the future.
The Parks Trust, which has been responsible for MK’s green spaces since 1992, is re-introducing its community-driven acorn collection campaign and is asking residents to plant some at home, ready to return them as saplings in two years’ time.
Milton Keynes’ woodlands are having a bumper crop of acorns this year, which means there are plenty available to grow oak trees for Howe Park Wood, Shenley Wood, and Linford Wood.
“These ancient woodlands, rich in biodiversity and history, are primarily composed of oak and ash trees,” says a Trust spokesperson on social media. “However, in recent years, ash dieback – a destructive fungal disease – has severely impacted ash populations.
“To combat this decline and maintain the integrity of the woodlands, we are bringing back our community initiative which aims to replace dying ash trees with native oaks, which share similar ecological traits.”
More than 950 oak trees have already been planted as part of the campaign, which first launched in autumn 2020. Residents can get involved by registering their interest and collecting acorns in one of three ancient woodlands and planting them at home. The seedlings will need to be cared for over the next one to two years before they are strong enough to plant in what will be their ‘forever’ homes.
Seedlings will be ready to give back to the Trust in winter 2026/27.
More details here: https://www.theparkstrust.com/our-work/biodiversity/nature-activities/acorn-collection/
