Stump Community Tree Nursery welcomed visitors on Saturday 4th July for our Summer Open Day. This was a fantastic opportunity for people to see our seeds and saplings, learn about our off-grid irrigation and solar system and to understand more about the huge diversity of trees grown by staff and volunteers.

Liz inspired visitors with tales from the Black Poplar project and explained the importance of saving this endangered species. The self-guided tours enabled visitors to explore the site at their own pace, with our expert team of volunteers on hand to answer any questions. Huge thanks to everyone who helped on the day. Your passion, enthusiasm and baking skills are all much appreciated.

There were also opportunities to discover more about two pioneering research projects currently hosted by the nursery. The NPK Recovery Project is processing urine from events around the UK to make a non-synthetic fertiliser to be used to enhance tree growth. Visitors had a chance to quiz lead researcher George from NPK about the data so far and how this could be applied to other areas of forestry and agriculture. People could also find out about our spore trap, part of a Plant Health Surveillance project to monitor pathogens in the environment at different sites around Wales. This is providing data on the prevalence of pathogens which may cause plant diseases and is fundamental in discovering if there are disease resistant ash trees in the area.

It was wonderful to meet many new volunteers and landowners on the day. If you would like to volunteer or plant with us, please get in touch.