Choose your
SAVE Our TREE's
Super Challenge
Looking after our trees
The Knick-Knack Tree
and his friends have set us challenges and given us things to think about when looking after our trees.
Look after our trees and they will look after you. They are the lungs of our planet, so please love them, protect them and nurture them.
Look after our trees
Save our trees, Save our planet
Teach and tell others
Forest Fires are burning them down.
Pests and diseases are affecting their health.
How can we help?
What can we do to help protect our trees?
Forest Fires are burning them down!
Forest fires are not always started by humans. They can occur naturally when lightning strikes the forest.
Forest fires are large uncontrolled fires. They can spread very easily in the forest because there is so much fuel (trees and undergrowth) that will burn.
Not all forest fires are bad!
Many trees and forests have evolved over millions of years to cope with forest fires.
In fact, some of the largest trees in the world, the giant sequoia, cannot reproduce without fire. They can grow to over 30 feet (9 meters) in diameter and more than 250 feet (76 m) tall. Giant sequoias are the largest trees on Earth. They can grow for more than 3,000 years. But without fire, they cannot reproduce. Their thick bark protects the tree from damage but, the cones of the Sequoias tree will not open to release their seeds until the heat from a forest fire causes them to open and the seeds then fall to the ground.
Watch this video to find out why the Giant Sequoia needs fire!
What the story about the Giant Sequoia tree is telling us, is that not all forest fires are bad ... we need to manage forest fires ... we do not always need to put them out, because some trees and plants might need them to survive.
Unwanted Forest Fires.
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We need to manage forest fires because some trees and forests need fire to survive.
STOP
What can we do to prevent unwanted Forest Fires?
How can we help?
Firebreaks
Forests and woodlands are managed to prevent fires from spreading. When you walk in the forest you will often see avenues, clearings in the forest, these are called firebreaks.
Human-caused fires can be due to any number of reasons, to help prevent them we can follow these rules:
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Obey local laws regarding open fires, including campfires,
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Keep all flammable objects away from fire,
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Have firefighting tools nearby and handy,
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Carefully dispose of hot charcoal,
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Drown all fires,
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Carefully extinguish smoking materials.
Forest fires can be extremely dangerous. They have the power to cause a lot of destruction because they spread very fast and reach extremely high temperatures.
If you spot a forest fire:
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call 999 immediately,
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try to give your exact location, including any landmarks,
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if possible meet the fire engine to give directions.
Pests and diseases are affecting their health.
In a firebreak, there is no vegetation or other material that can burn. This makes it hard for a fire to jump across the break. Therefore, the spread of a possible fire is delayed.
Fungal diseases and bugs can be dangerous to trees. They can break down a tree's structural integrity leading them to literally fall apart. They may also attack the leaves hurting a tree's ability to make food through photosynthesis.
Scientists work very hard to keep pests and diseases under control. This process is called Biosecurity and it helps to keep us all safe.
Biosecurity means living and working safely near animals and around nature so that neither animals nor people get sick! Scientists work very hard around the world to develop and use the best biosecurity practices. That way we can have healthy trees, plants, pets, people, and farm animals like poultry!
Visit the Countryside Classroom Website and Download your countryside Classroom Pests and Diseases fact sheets.
How can we help our scientists improve Biosecurity?
Here's what to do
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Tree Pests and Diseases
Teacher Factsheets
How can we help?
Visit the Countryside Classroom website and register free to download these stunning Teacher factsheets for common pests and diseases on trees in the UK. Covering four common broadleaved trees (oak, ash, sweet chestnut and horse chestnut), these factsheets have been designed for educators and older children to use, complete with management and reporting advice. Developed by the Sylva Foundation in collaboration with the Forestry Commission Plant Health Forestry Team.
Study your countryside Classroom Pests and Diseases fact sheets
You can ask your Mum or Dad a teacher or a friend to help.
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Do some investigation!
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Go out into your gardens, woodlands, villages, towns, and forests and see if you can find any trees which show signs of disease.
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Take a notebook, your fact sheets, and a camera with you.
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Report what you find
DO report new cases of the disease to the Forestry Commission through their Tree Alert service.
If you need help to do this, ask your mum or dad or a teacher.
Always keep an eye on a tree's safety.
Diseased trees may have rotting branches and can threaten injury or damage if they fall.
If you want to find out more information about biosecurity measures, visit the relevant website for your country:
Teachers
Preventing the spread of diseases - what you can do?
If you want to find out more about pests and diseases and how to keep trees healthy, visit the Forestry England the Woodland Trust websites using the links below.
Keeping Trees Healthy
Find out what Forestry England is doing to keep our trees healthy.
Tree Pests & Diseases
Find out more about Tree Pests & Diseases on the Woodland Trust website.
Teachers
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Clean your footwear before and after walking in the woods.
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Wash down your car and bicycle tyres to remove any mud and plant material.
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Stick to clearly marked paths so as not to stray into areas that may be infected or being monitored.
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Don't take plant material or cuttings from the countryside.
It is a good idea to take photographs and record what you see. This will be useful to show people what you have found and also to see if the diseased trees are looking better or worse the next time you look at them.
Always take notice of signs and avoid areas of woodland that may be already be affected by pests or diseases.
Our Trees are under attack!
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We are cutting trees down for materials and fuel.
We are clearing vast areas of forests to make room for ourselves.
To help Save Our Trees, gardeners and managers of parks and other sites with ash trees help stop the local spread of ash dieback by collecting the fallen leaves and burning, burying, or deep composting them. This disrupts the fungus's lifecycle - you could help by doing this in your garden or in your village, town, or community.
You can find more guidance from the Forestry Commission using this link:
Preventing Forest Fires.
Reporting a forest fire.
Tree pests and diseases are not always visible when they are present. There are simple steps you can take to slow the spread of pests and diseases:
We are cutting trees down for materials and fuel!
Sustainable Forest Management
Is it ok to cut down trees?
The answer is 'yes', provided we do it responsibly and sustainably!
But what does this mean?
Forests, woodlands, and trees are home to many birds, animals, and insects. We have a responsibility to leave enough trees for all the world's creatures, including ourselves.
We need to maintain our Natural Forests, to retain the enormous variety of life they contain - variety in genes, variety among species, and a variety of ecosystems.
We need to strike a balance!
What is a Sustainable forest
A sustainable forest is a forest that is carefully managed so that as trees are felled, they are replaced with seedlings that eventually grow into mature trees. This is a carefully and skillfully managed system. ... A typical sustainable forest will contain trees of all ages and often different species of trees.
Sustainably-managed forests meet the needs of wildlife while supporting livelihoods and providing many other ecosystem services, such as carbon storage and flood risk mitigation.
Why are sustainable forests important?
We also need sustainable woodlands, trees, and forests to give us materials, fuel and food.
Deforestation
We are clearing vast areas of forests to make room for ourselves.
STOP Deforestation
Here are some things you can do to help Save our Forests.
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Plant a Tree where you can.
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Go paperless at home and in the office.
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Buy recycled products and then recycle them again.
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Support the products of companies that are committed to reducing deforestation. ...
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Raise awareness - Tell your family and friends and your community about this list of things they can do to help Save Our Trees.
How can we help?
Forest management is concerned with the complete life cycle of the trees and the forest, from getting trees off to a better start, keeping trees healthy, and making sure trees are harvested in a way that protects the future of the forest.
There are many organisations around the world that organise forest management and protect our wildlife.
Here are just a few of them.
Click on the links and logos below to visit their websites and find out more about what they are doing to help save our planet.
Forest Management
THIS MUST STOP NOW!
Sustainable forests
Planting trees
