What your money can buy.
The plan is to increase the reach of the project nationwide over the next five years to install “A Forest in a Box”, in every national school.
With just €5 you can buy seeds.
With €10 you can get 3 different types of seeds.
With €50 you can bring forest in a box to 1 school.
With €100 you can bring forest in a box to 3 schools.
With €1000 you can bring forest in a box to 20 schools.
The plan is to increase the reach of the project nationwide over the next five years to install “A Forest in a Box”, in every national school. The aim is to inspire the creation of new native woodlands in the footprints of old native forest sites, creating a new appreciation for the known multiple benefits to be gleaned from restoring our much neglected Native Woodland Resource.
What your money can buy.
The plan is to increase the reach of the project nationwide over the next five years to install “A Forest in a Box”, in every national school.
With just €5 you can buy seeds.
With €10 you can get 3 different types of seeds.
With €50 you can bring forest in a box to 1 school.
With €100 you can bring forest in a box to 3 schools.
With €1000 you can bring forest in a box to 20 schools.
The plan is to increase the reach of the project nationwide over the next five years to install “A Forest in a Box”, in every national school. The aim is to inspire the creation of new native woodlands in the footprints of old native forest sites, creating a new appreciation for the known multiple benefits to be gleaned from restoring our much neglected Native Woodland Resource.
Forest in a Box – Native Trees for Schools Project
The Woodland League launched a new Native Trees initiative on Tuesday 7th March, during National Tree Week.
The project is linked to the message of the new film, “Call of the Forest, the Forgotten Wisdom of Trees” by Diana Beresford Kroeger, consultant scientist to The Woodland League whose work is featured in the film. This is a call for native woodland restoration on a global scale by the people for the people.
The Woodland League Forest in a box
Andrew St. Ledger recently visited Bronagh’s 3rd class and talked to the class about the importance of trees, biodiversity and the layers of the forest. Swords Educate Together N.S. is delighted and thrilled to be one of only 10 schools nationwide chosen to participate in this amazing project
The Forest in a Box replicates the forest floor with leaf litter, pine needles and seeds from native trees such as acorns (oak trees) and hazelnuts (hazel tree). The children planted these seeds in the leaf litter where they will sprout into saplings. These saplings will be transplanted into soil next year. The year after these young trees will be donated to local communities in our area. Andrew explained that although this is a local Sustainable Development Project it has Global impact for Climate Change. He also said that the children “are investing in their own sustainable future in a unique way that combines the past, present and future. It is amazing that some of the acorns are from the legendary local Brian Boru oak tree reputedly 1000 years old. ”
The children have gained so much from Andrew’s last visit to our school (25th April 2018). 28 children from 3rd class and 16 Green Team members listened and participated in a captivating interactive workshop on biodiversity and layers of the forest. The children especially loved handling the various types of wood that Andrew brought with him for this workshop.
SETNS has recently been awarded their 5th Green Flag Biodiversity and having the Woodland Leagues’s Forest in a Box was a contributing factor. Fingal Independent Newspaper also covered our flag and the Woodland League’s name was mentioned and children photographed at the box.
Thank you for the opportunity to participate in this excellent initiative.
Restore Ireland’s Native Forest
For the launch, The Woodland League gifted a Dunemann copy nature, native tree seed box, “A Forest in a Box”, to Brigit’s Hearth pre school in Tuamgraney Co. Clare. We would like to thank the children, teachers and parents of Brigit’s Hearth for their co-operation
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Restore Ireland’s Native Forest
For the launch, The Woodland League gifted a Dunemann copy nature, native tree seed box, “A Forest in a Box”, to Brigit’s Hearth pre school in Tuamgraney Co. Clare. We would like to thank the children, teachers and parents of Brigit’s Hearth for their co-operation
Show children the importance of Irish Forest
The tree seed incubator box under the supervision of Andrew St Ledger, PRO of the League, was then activated with the children participating, spreading the leaf litter mix, then following up by casting the native tree seeds of hazel and oak which they had collected in the nearby Raheen ancient oak wood. Andrew said, “These children are investing in their own future in a unique way that combines the past, present and future, it is amazing that some of the acorns are from the legendary local Brian Boru oak tree, reputedly 1000 years old”.
Swords Educate Together N.S.
Show children the importance of Irish Forest
The tree seed incubator box under the supervision of Andrew St Ledger, PRO of the League, was then activated with the children participating, spreading the leaf litter mix, then following up by casting the native tree seeds of hazel and oak which they had collected in the nearby Raheen ancient oak wood. Andrew said, “These children are investing in their own future in a unique way that combines the past, present and future, it is amazing that some of the acorns are from the legendary local Brian Boru oak tree, reputedly 1000 years old”.
Swords Educate Together N.S.
Making lasting change
The box uses a copy of the natural forest floor of leaf litter to start the trees off, the sides creating shade to encourage the trees to reach for the light with fine mesh across the bottom and the top lid to protect the seeds from being eaten, so increasing their chances of survival by 90% or more. Each one metre by one metre seed box is capable of providing approximately 200 healthy native trees for planting out every two years. Ideally the seeds are collected by the school children within a ten mile radius as it is a fact that these native trees are the most adapted to the area, and therefore the most valuable in providing Ecosystem services, such as, wildlife habitat, water filtering, soil protection, flood prevention, etc.
St. Columbanus National School.
St. Columbanus National School.
Making lasting change
The box uses a copy of the natural forest floor of leaf litter to start the trees off, the sides creating shade to encourage the trees to reach for the light with fine mesh across the bottom and the top lid to protect the seeds from being eaten, so increasing their chances of survival by 90% or more. Each one metre by one metre seed box is capable of providing approximately 200 healthy native trees for planting out every two years. Ideally the seeds are collected by the school children within a ten mile radius as it is a fact that these native trees are the most adapted to the area, and therefore the most valuable in providing Ecosystem services, such as, wildlife habitat, water filtering, soil protection, flood prevention, etc.
The Origins of Ireland Forestry policy.
Prior to the foundation of Saorstát Éireann in 1922, Horace Plunkett, the founder of the international co-operative movement, established the Recess committee in 1895. The Recess committee produced a report in 1896 which included the following enthusiastic recommendation for a national forestry plan to be developed in tandem with a national agriculture policy. This led to the establishment of the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction (DATI) for Ireland in 1899, the forerunner of DAFM. It is very clear he was not talking about tree farming of monocultures of exotic conifers, he is describing natural and semi natural useful broadleaf forestry. He is also proposing planting the upland and blanket bogs which was considered wastelands but we now know its ecological and carbon sink value.
There is no reason why the country should not again largely recover its forest area. Of the existing area of so-called waste land, at least 3 million acres are calculated by competent authorities to be capable of growing one kind or another of timber; and with this extension of forests would come the very great and valuable variety of industries in connection with the working of wood…
To sum up the chief advantages of reafforestation. A shelter belt along the west coast would protect lands from the violence of Atlantic storms, which carry with them far inland many ingredients injurious to agricultural produce. The planting of mountains would tend to equalize rainfall and temperature, and prevent upland soils being washed away by torrents, and rivers being silted up and lowlands flooded. Forests help the preservation of birds, which prey on insects hurtful to crops. When planted on the banks of rivers they encourage the increase of fish by reason of their shade, the steady supply of water they promote, and the insects and animalculae they bring which trout and salmon and their fry find their best food. They lead to the propagation of forest game (such as pheasants, cock, deer, hares), and become preserves, the letting of which is to the State an important source of revenue. After a certain period, when the trees have grown, and the falling of the leaves has enriched the soil, the grazing of the forests becomes very valuable. There is further the value of the timber itself, and of the bye-products, (bark, charcoal, leaves, grasses, mosses, shrubs, weeds, fallen branches, resin, pitch, tar, turpentine), the intermediate agricultural products (flax, corn, potatoes, roots, fruits, truffles), and the series of wood-working industries (sawing, pole- making, cart and wheel-making, stave-making, handle-making, basket-making, etc). All these have been found to be actual accompaniments of forests in other countries.
The Origins of Ireland Forestry policy.
Prior to the foundation of Saorstát Éireann in 1922, Horace Plunkett, the founder of the international co-operative movement, established the Recess committee in 1895. The Recess committee produced a report in 1896 which included the following enthusiastic recommendation for a national forestry plan to be developed in tandem with a national agriculture policy. This led to the establishment of the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction (DATI) for Ireland in 1899, the forerunner of DAFM. It is very clear he was not talking about tree farming of monocultures of exotic conifers, he is describing natural and semi natural useful broadleaf forestry. He is also proposing planting the upland and blanket bogs which was considered wastelands but we now know its ecological and carbon sink value.
There is no reason why the country should not again largely recover its forest area. Of the existing area of so-called waste land, at least 3 million acres are calculated by competent authorities to be capable of growing one kind or another of timber; and with this extension of forests would come the very great and valuable variety of industries in connection with the working of wood…
To sum up the chief advantages of reafforestation. A shelter belt along the west coast would protect lands from the violence of Atlantic storms, which carry with them far inland many ingredients injurious to agricultural produce. The planting of mountains would tend to equalize rainfall and temperature, and prevent upland soils being washed away by torrents, and rivers being silted up and lowlands flooded. Forests help the preservation of birds, which prey on insects hurtful to crops. When planted on the banks of rivers they encourage the increase of fish by reason of their shade, the steady supply of water they promote, and the insects and animalculae they bring which trout and salmon and their fry find their best food. They lead to the propagation of forest game (such as pheasants, cock, deer, hares), and become preserves, the letting of which is to the State an important source of revenue. After a certain period, when the trees have grown, and the falling of the leaves has enriched the soil, the grazing of the forests becomes very valuable. There is further the value of the timber itself, and of the bye-products, (bark, charcoal, leaves, grasses, mosses, shrubs, weeds, fallen branches, resin, pitch, tar, turpentine), the intermediate agricultural products (flax, corn, potatoes, roots, fruits, truffles), and the series of wood-working industries (sawing, pole- making, cart and wheel-making, stave-making, handle-making, basket-making, etc). All these have been found to be actual accompaniments of forests in other countries.