Miyawaki ‘micro-wood’ work begins for Longridge park

The ground is being prepared at John Smith’s Playing Field. Pic: Longridge Environment Group.

A micro-wood is due to be planted at John Smith’s Playing Field in Longridge after funding was secured from Lancashire County Council.

Longridge Environment Group (LEG) is preparing for a planting day on Sunday, 16 February, at the park off Chaigley Road, which sits at the north of Longridge.

In a Facebook post, LEG said: “We are delighted to share that Longridge is about to join a small number of pioneering towns and villages across Britain with a micro-wood, or Miyawaki micro forest, at John Smith’s Playing Field.”

The scheme has been made possible by Lancashire County Council’s Treescapes initiative, which has funded similar projects around the county, as Blog Preston has previously revealed. Treescapes is itself funded by Defra.

LEG added: “The ground is now prepared and planting day will be on Sunday, 16 February, from 10 am at John Smith’s playing field. It would be wonderful to see as many members of the community there as possible. Just turn up and all guidance and instruction will be given.

“Please come prepared for possible wet weather with appropriate footwear and clothing. [This is a] family friendly event, but please no unattended children. Feel free to bring a narrow spade, but as we will be planting into prepared soft mulch material, broom handles, staves or dibbers may be a better option.

“To make this a social event, please do bring a flask of tea or coffee and maybe biscuits or cake to share.”

Miyawaki forests are named after their creator, Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki. He developed a method in the 1970s as a method to restore native forests.

These forests use only native species that would naturally occur in the local ecosystem. The method typically involves planting a diverse mix of native species and can be created in urban or rural areas, even on small plots of land, the size of a tennis court.

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