Grow for it

THE News of the World today joins with the Forestry Commission to begin the biggest tree-planting campaign ever undertaken by a newspaper.

We hope to green Britain with more than ONE MILLION TREES and help in the fight against climate change.

And to do that, from tomorrow, well over 30,000 schools across the UK will each receive up to 400 FREE tree seeds and a specially-produced DVD courtesy of the Forestry Commission. That's an astonishing total of more than 12 MILLION seeds.

To go with them we have a website packed with information, graphics and videos that will grow to become one of the most wide-ranging ecological learning resources ever presented to UK education.

It even tells you how to make plant pots from rolled-up pages of this paper. You'll find it all at:

www.seedsforschools.org

The idea is that schools sow the seeds in pots or trays and nurture them indoors, initially. Then, when they become seedlings-or shoots as many of us call them-in anything from seven months to a year's time, you take them out into the community so they can hopefully flourish into trees.

The initiative is part of our Go Green & Save eco-campaign which has also encouraged readers to recycle their phones and insulate their houses.

Loads of stars are backing us. Britain's Got Talent judge Amanda Holden said: "Planting a million trees across the country would be an amazing feat which will benefit the whole planet.

"As a parent I worry about the world we're leaving to future generations. I'm looking forward to planting a tree in my garden when they're ready."

www.seedsforschools.org

Arsenal's Theo Walcott, hero of this week's Champions League quarter final win against Villarreal added: "This is a great idea. Children get the opportunity to do something fun and make a difference."

Dragon's Den star Peter Jones told us: "I'm offering a corner of my land to local kids when their seeds turn into shoots."

Seeds For Schools has short and long-term benefits. Because most schools are in towns or inner cities, we'll be growing trees where they can do most good. As our website explains, trees are a fantastic resource for regulating the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere-the gas that is at the heart of global warming issues.

Caring for the seeds is a great part of eco-education-and this campaign will also strengthen school ties with local organisations across the UK.

Groups that could take on seedlings might include councils, parks, sports grounds, businesses such as banks, supermarkets etc . . . in fact, any organisation that has the space in which trees might flourish and the resources to care for their growth.

And to show how this could work we put CHELSEA Football Club in touch with St Andrew's School which is local to their training ground in Cobham, Surrey. Pupils met the stars who were still on a high after their stunning Champions League game with Liverpool earlier in the week.

www.seedsforschools.org

Captain John Terry, who is dad to 21-month-old twins, said: "My daughters aren't old enough to go to school yet, but I hope there's something like this for them when they're old enough."

JT is pictured above launching Seeds for Schools.

Getting so many seeds and DVDs to so many schools has been a mammoth project itself. And we're indebted to Royal Mail who took on the delivery task so that teachers could get the seeds in time for the kids' return from the Easter break. The tree seeds we've sent out are of three types and all from Forestry Commission stock: Common Alder, Silver Birch and Scots Pine.

They are native to the UK, they've all been sourced from UK forests, they should be easy to grow, and they are suitable for the the vast majority of the UK's range of soils and temperatures.

Clearly, the take-up and the survival rate will be less than 100 per cent. But if only 10 per cent of the seeds make it to maturity we'll have passed the million mark and massively helped in the greening of Britain.Seeds For Schools has the backing of Education Secretary Ed Balls and Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband.

Mr Balls said: "Climate change is a key part of the school curriculum. That's why this campaign is really important. I hope schools across the country will get involved and do their bit."

Mr Miliband told us: "The task of tackling climate change is huge, but it starts in local ways, like planting these trees and helping them grow. I urge everyone-teachers, parents, friends and neighbours-to follow their lead.

"Seeds for Schools is a great way to spread the word about how precious our planet is and that we can all do something to help. I hope it's a huge success."

Our website also has a section of Teachers' Notes prepared for six to 14-year-olds by practising teachers with a special interest in climate change.

So please do all you can to help make this project a success.

A million trees is a wonderful legacy-and it's within our grasp.

IF your school doesn't receive its seeds pack with Teacher's Post in the next two weeks please e-mail custserv@newsoftheworld.co.uk , putting 'Seeds for Schools' in the subject field.

• SPECIAL BRANCH
• UN hears our tree crusade

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