AN avenue of beautiful trees will welcome visitors to Liverpool’s Croxteth Hall and Country Park as a planting project gets underway on Tuesday (4 December).
Youngsters from Emmaus Primary School will join members of the Croxteth Park Volunteer Group (CPVG) to plant 18 Wild Cherry trees, which will provide a stunning pink blossom gateway along the driveway leading to the green space in the spring.
The tree-lined route will stretch from Muirhead Avenue Gates to the park, and has been made possible thanks to the dedication of the CPVG and funding from The Mersey Forest and the Community Forest Trust.
This is the first phase of a large-scale project in the park, which will see around 400 trees planted by local school children over the forthcoming months.
Chris Beyga from the CPVG said: “It is vital to have a project like this and we are very proud to have been the lead partner in bringing everyone together to achieve this.
“We hope this project will be one of many legacies of the group. It’s been a clear objective of ours to work closely with local children to engender a sense of pride and ownership in them as future citizens and custodians of the wonderful park that was gifted to the people of Liverpool by the late Earl of Sefton.”
Steph Hepworth, from the The Mersey Forest team, said: “We are proud to support the work of the CPVG in their tree planting projects within Croxteth Park. This winter we are planting 400 saplings within the park’s woodland along with an avenue of cherry trees leading to the main car park; this is the main route that visitors take when visiting the park so it will make a real impact to Croxteth Park’s visitor’s first impressions especially when the blossom is on the trees in spring.
“This project is part of the Trees for Learning initiative which has been funded by Defra as part of their aim to plant one million trees with primary school children by 2020.The children involved will learn about the trees they are planting and why it is so vitally important to plant more trees, they’ll also be leaving a lasting legacy for their community and visitors to this popular green space.”
Liverpool City Council’s Cabinet Member responsible for the environment, Councillor James Noakes, said: “Many people in the city still don’t realise what a gem Croxteth Park is and I’m delighted that with planting initiatives like this, we can raise the awareness of this beautiful green space which is on our doorstep.
“In the spring, the ornamental flowers will provide an eye-catching entrance to the park and hopefully will attract more people to come and discover the area.
“We are committed to encouraging people to get out and about in our parks and I’m thrilled that children from Emmaus Primary School will be joining volunteers at the planting sessions. We want to engage youngsters in enhancing and really valuing our green spaces, and as a result, make sure future generations are invested in spending time in our parks and gardens.”
