The national campaign encouraged people to 'Plant a Tree for the Jubilee' across the United Kingdom, and everyone from individuals, groups, schools and communities to larger organisations and businesses have been encouraged to get involved.
The Queen and His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales, now His Majesty King Charles III, planted the first tree to launch the initiative at Windsor Castle in March 2021, and in the first 6 months one million trees were planted across the nation, with the aim of reaching 3 million trees by the end of 2022.
With an emphasis on planting sustainably, an important aim of the Queen's Green Canopy was to create a green legacy in honour of The Queen's leadership of the nation which would benefit future generations, the climate and wildlife.
Following the death of the Queen in September, The Queen's Green Canopy initiative has been extended by His Majesty King Charles III to the end of the planting season in March 2023, to give people an opportunity to plant trees to honour Her Majesty.
Our support for the Queen's Green Canopy
We've thrown ourselves fully behind The Queen's Green Canopy initiative and in the first planting season of 2022 we planted 600 trees across the county, with many trees being planted by our Cabinet Members.
We are planting hundreds more in the second phase of planting from October 2022 and as well as supporting The Queen's Green Canopy initiative, the trees we plant will count towards our target of planting one million trees across the county by 2030.
People are being encouraged to plant trees from the end of October into November and December 2022.
Anyone planning on planting a tree can get advice from our countryside service, simply email countrysideservice@derbyshire.gov.uk
For more information about how to get involved, visit The Queen's Green Canopywhich includes tips on planting trees, how to order an official plaque and an interactive map so that people can pin their tree on a national QGC map.
Council Leader Councillor Barry Lewis said:
"Trees are a vital part of our environment for so many reasons. As well as being important for biodiversity they are a key component on our journey to becoming a net zero county, helping to off-set carbon emissions that cannot be cut through other measures.
“So many groups, organisations, schools, individuals and whole communities have supported this positive initiative so far and are continuing to do so."
As part of the Queen's Green Canopy initiative, schools may be able to access funding for tree planting, and the Woodland Trust is making free trees available for schools and communities.
The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Coppice
The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Coppice, in memory of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, at Shipley Country Park, is made up of 6 very special hornbeam trees which all played their part in The Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations during 2022.
These trees hung from branches of the Tree of Trees, the exciting centrepiece of the Platinum Jubilee events in London, which stood proudly outside Buckingham Palace and was seen on TV by more than one billion people across the world.
The 6 trees in The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Coppice were secured for the county by the Queen's Green Canopy, with thanks to the Derbyshire Lieutenancy which has funded a seventh tree planted in the centre. The centre tree is a copper beech and is the finishing touch to the coppice as there is a tree to represent each decade of Her Majesty's historic 70-year reign.
Derbyshire is very lucky to have secured 6 trees from the Tree of Trees to develop the Queen's Platinum Jubilee Coppice at Shipley. Each of the 6 trees is dedicated to a different organisation, group or school in the county.
The 6 organisations with a dedicated tree
Each of the 6 trees from the Tree of Trees is dedicated to an organisation, school or service in Derbyshire. While the original trees that were part of the Tree of Trees were planted at Shipley Country Park at a ceremony on 18 October 2022, each of the recipient organisations have received a sapling to plant in their own grounds, along with the official aluminium pot embossed with Her Majesty's Cypher.
The chosen recipients who have had a tree dedicated to them are
- Alfreton Park School - Alfreton
- Buxton Mountain Rescue Team - Buxton
- Derbyshire children's homes
- Derbyshire Federation of Women's Institutes - Derby
- Landmarks College - Eckington
- Royal School for the Deaf - Derby
Councillor Barry Lewis said:
"We're very lucky to have received 6 trees from the Tree of Trees which stood outside Buckingham Palace during the height of The Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations. These 6 trees were secured for the county by the Derbyshire Lieutenancy, and I'm delighted we have created a dedicated Queen's Platinum Jubilee Coppice in memory of Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at Shipley Country Park where everyone will be able to see the trees for themselves. They are truly a part of history."
The Tree of Trees
Standing outside Buckingham Palace during the height of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, The Tree of Trees stood as a message of hope, regeneration and optimism to the nation and the world, and looked particularly beautiful at night with lights shining brightly from its branches.
It was illuminated as the Principal Beacon in a ceremony in front of Buckingham Palace on 2 June 2022 and could be seen in all its glory as The Queen officially started the chain of Platinum Jubilee beacon-lightings across the country and commonwealth that evening.
The idea behind The Tree of Trees
The Tree of Trees was illuminated during a ceremony at Buckingham Palace on the evening of Thursday 2 June 2022 in honour of Her Majesty The Queen.
Designed by Thomas Heatherwick, materials for the sculpture were sourced wherever possible from local suppliers within the United Kingdom to minimise transport, energy use and waste.
The Tree of Trees stood 21 metres high, made of reclaimed surplus steel. A total of 350 British grown saplings sat in spun aluminium pots set along 80 branches. It was created by a team of welders, designers, fabricators and arborists from Cleveland and Ely to Halifax, Portslade and London.
In the autumn after the main Jubilee celebrations the saplings were taken to a nursery in Cambridgeshire and cared for in 20-litre pots until the planting season started again in October. The 350 trees included alder, field maple, hazel, hornbeam, larch, rowan, silver birch small leaved lime and whitebeam. Each of the 350 trees were gifted to community groups, good causes and organisations across the UK to celebrate their work and help to bring more greenery to cities and renew the countryside.
Our countryside service now look after the trees and will ensure they are nurtured and grow strong so that people can enjoy seeing this part of history for themselves at Shipley Country Park for decades to come.
From the Tree of Trees in London to The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Coppice at Shipley Country Park
The 6 hornbeam trees which now make up the circle of The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Coppice sat in their aluminium pots along with 344 others, making up the effect of rich foliage along branches of the Tree of Trees outside Buckingham Palace. After the Jubilee celebrations the Tree of Trees was eventually dismantled in the autumn of 2022, and all the British-grown saplings were cared for in a nursery before being delivered to their final homes across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland and re-planted to grow and thrive.
The hornbeams and the copper beech tree in the centre have been chosen carefully as they will prosper in the climate and soil at Shipley Country Park and be around for many years to be enjoyed by future generations.
The Dedication to The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Coppice
The tree-planting ceremony to officially launch The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Coppice was held at Shipley Country Park on 18 October 2022, with trees planted by groups in receipt of the trees in the presence of His Majesty's Vice Lord-Lieutenant Colonel John Wilson OBE DL, Chief Executive of The Queen's Green Canopy Colonel Dan Rex MVO, and Leader of Derbyshire County Council Councillor Barry Lewis.