By Charles Batchelor
More than a dozen households have responded to the Society’s proposal to match-fund the planting of trees in Southbrook Road. We have set aside funds to spend on the planting and invited residents to provide a similar amount.
The death of several of the aged cherries has left Southbrook Road particularly denuded of tree cover though the Society plans to roll out the programme to other local streets in future years.
Much of the £395 charge per tree is accounted for by labour costs, digging up the pavement to create a tree pit. Working with Street Trees for Living, the charity managing Lewisham’s street tree programme, we have surveyed potential planting sites.
Some residents have expressed an interest in trees offering either spring blossom or autumn colour. A final decision has yet to be taken on the varieties to be planted but they will comprise a small number of tree types rather than a single variety. This will make the trees less liable to succumb en masse to any of the many viruses that can affect them. Planting will take place in the winter of 2025.