Ground Control marks National Tree Week

With National Tree Week almost upon us, Ground Control, the UK’s leading supplier of award-winning landscaping and maintenance services, has announced its involvement in a new project to plant over 15,000 new trees near Chelmsford.

Working together with Essex County Council and the Woodland Trust, the Evergreen Fund – Ground Controls’ unique sustainability fund – will pay the planting and supervision costs of the 15,000  saplings, with work to create two new woodlands at Chelmer Valley commencing next week.
 
Financed by five percent of Ground Control’s operating profit, the Evergreen Fund specialises in  providing seed and growth capital to projects focused on delivering measurable, beneficial and sustainable environmental impact.
 
Other tree planting projects financed by the Evergreen Fund include:

The Cotswold Conservation Board 

With the popular Ourboretum project encouraging the public to help plant 2,020 trees across Gloucestershire, the fund is providing pots, compost and labels for growing samplings and next year will supply tree shelters and additional trees. In addition, it will provide 1,220 trees and tree protection for a new hedgerow in the Avon District for planting this season.

Wirral Council

Supplying and planting 1,520 trees together with biodegradable mulch mats at Eastham Country Park during National Tree Week.

Trent River Trust

Providing 2,000 trees and protection for planting along the River Trent before Christmas, followed by supplying and planting and additional 3,500 trees in January.

Make It Wild

Providing the trees and labour to help build a ‘super hedge’ of 5,800 trees and hedgerow shrubs in North Yorkshire in January.

Chris Bawtree, Environmental Lead at Ground Control, said:

The Chelmer Valley project is a perfect example of the sort of scheme the Evergreen Fund is keen to support. The planting will enable the woodlands to provide new multifunctional habitats, benefitting both wildlife and the local community. They’ll contribute to natural flood prevention, increase biodiversity and help Essex County Council meet its sustainability goals.

 Ground Control CEO, Simon Morrish, added:

Projects like Chelmer Valley illustrate our core value of caring for the environment. Tree establishment projects are a great way to offset carbon and support the environment as just one broadleaf tree will absorb up to one tonne of carbon dioxide during its full lifetime.
 
Across all projects, the Evergreen Fund will be involved in planting 45,000 trees this season. Combined with our commercial operations, as a company we’ll double our planting operations this year to 170,000 trees and are set to reach our goal of planting one million trees by 2025.