Why Protect Earth plant trees in winter

The autumn and winter are some of the best times to plant trees. Especially for us, where we plant thousands of trees.

From October to March, we can be found around the UK planting trees. We plant on Protect Earth-owned land and land provided by landowners and farmers.

The cooler winter months have the best conditions for tree survival. Temperatures are moderate enough that we don't have to worry about tree root systems drying out before planting. Or overworking newly planted trees and expending energy to stabilise root systems in new soil while developing leaves as they would in other seasons. This can be fatal for trees.

So, lets look deeper (’dig a little deeper’ surely!) at why we at Protect Earth harbour a love for wintertime tree planting.

Why winter is ideal for planting a lot of trees at once

Again, because of the ambitious number of trees we plant annually and the difficulty in scheduling suitable planting conditions outdoors over a few months, November to March are generally optimal temperatures.

Winter temps mean the tree saplings go dormant, essentially hibernating until they bud and sprout new leaves in Spring. This means they can be transported easily from the tree nurseries they’re grown on in the millions.

Another reason that winter is a great time for us to plant trees is that we work with farmers and landowners who let us plant trees, hedgerows, shelterbelts. While they're still busy during the wintertime, wintertime means livestock may be wintering in barns and sheds. We won't disturb them, and they won't eat what we've planted! We can also maintain a relationship with the landowners and farmers, staying out of their way easier in the wintertime.

Why winter planting gives trees the best chance for survival

The soil is moist during the winter, with regular rainfall promoting initial root expansion, allowing the roots to establish before the weather warms up. It is stressful for a tree to be planted outside in a new environment where they need to settle, so giving them a chance to adapt to this change will give them a head start on the weeds that will start providing competition in spring.

Planting in the summertime requires regular watering and other maintenance. Enjoyable tasks that are easy to do at home on an evening or across the weekend. But, again, it's incredibly difficult to regularly water tens of thousands of new trees on multiple sites across the country, not to mention the emissions involved with doing that.

The likelihood of survival for the tree also goes up. The trees only really have to focus on snuggling their roots up to the new soil they find themselves in - which is energy-consuming. But, they don't have to burn more energy on growing leaves, processing sunlight, and all those functions. That comes later in the growing cycle. Planted in winter, they can concentrate on getting themselves snug as a bug in their new soily home! Other times of the year, planting trees can be like burning the candle at both ends!

Tree survival is an important goal for everyone. No one wants to plant a tree to see it perish. But, when considering the number of trees that Protect Earth plants annually, it could amount to a significant number of trees dying that don't contribute anything and then need replacing. We don't want to replant trees. As a community, we all want new and more trees to be planted!

Conclusion

Planting a tree? Plant it in any of the four seasons following a few guidelines, and the tree should succeed. Bare root saplings need to be done in winter through to early spring, but cell grown saplings or potted trees can be planted any time.

When it comes to the numbers that Protect Earth plants, bare root saplings make the most sense, as potted trees are more expensive. Using cell-grown saplings in October and early November so we can reliably plant whilst waiting for the bare root saplings to be ready. We’ll only plant sites in April that are close to water as they’ll need more water than others, and then we stop planting until October again.

We know the idea of getting out of a warm bed while it's still dark to be outside planting trees in the heart of winter isn't the most appealing. Trust us, we understand! But, from experience, we can also talk about how good it feels to be out with a group of volunteers planting trees and transforming landscapes. If you're interested, please volunteer for a day out tree-planting with us. We'll do everything we can to make it a good day out, and you'll spend time with new like-minded friends.

Come and join us planting trees at one of our tree planting events all over England and Wales.