We've planted more than 2,000 trees over the past year. Help keep our new trees friends happy and our borough green! Source: GreenBlue Urban
Update on 4 November 2022: Would you like to a free tree to take home? As we continue to commit to becoming the greenest borough in the UK, we’ll be handing out 100 free trees for residents on Tuesday 8 November. Find out more and reserve a tree online to ensure you are not disappointed.
Trees help clean our air, keep our streets cool, protect against flooding and provide shelter for many animals and insects across Hammersmith & Fulham.
But in high temperatures – like we’ve seen recently this summer – they also need our help.
Got a young tree in your neighbourhood? If so, please water it so it stays alive and healthy.
Tree watering tips
Trees need approximately 10 litres a week. All it takes is a couple of big jugs of water or a bucket once or twice a week.
Whether it’s outside your home, in your street, or your local park, any new tree in its first three years will benefit from some extra help. Even a little goes a long way.
1. Get to the root of it
Most young trees are equipped with a watering pipe. Water should be poured down the tube until it's full, as well as on top of the surface near the base of the tree to allow it to soak down to the roots.
If the ground around the base of the tree looks particularly dry and cracked, use a fork or trowel to loosen the earth to avoid excessive water run-off.
And why not plant flowers, herbs and shrubs at the base of your tree to add a splash of colour to your neighbourhood?
2. Time is of the essence
To help ensure your new tree friend can enjoy its drink to the fullest, water it in the evening or early morning.
This will prevent the water from evaporating in the heat throughout the day.
3. Use rainwater
Want to keep both your tree happy and water bills low? Use rainwater! Water butts are one of the easiest ways to stop clean water from being lost to the sewers and protect water resources at the same time.
Find out more in our Living with Rainwater guide here.
Making H&F green
Caring for our young trees is only one of the steps we’re taking to make H&F a kinder, happier and greener borough.
The last two decades have been the hottest ever recorded in the UK. H&F is densely built and so gets particularly hot due to the urban heat island effect. Hard surfaces – like concrete, brick and paving – absorb the day’s heat, preventing the city from cooling down at night.
Part of the actions we’re taking to tackle this issue is by increasing our tree cover.
Since last year, H&F has become home to two Tiny Forests, with yet another one on the way. Each of them consists of 600 trees and shrubs planted in an area the size of a tennis court.
Find our Tiny Forests in Hammersmith Park and Normand Park.
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