THE MODERN MINT BLOG
Planting Trees In The UK
This June, we have been talking about planting trees in the UK.
Update March 2020: We now have a Grove Of Trees You Can Add To – Visit Here To Plant a Tree
Why Plant Trees In The UK?
Our recent Chelsea Fringe project was about using your garden to capture carbon.
One way of doing that was to plant trees. Trees take carbon from the air and turn in into…. themselves. Trees and woodlands are not actually the largest stores of carbon on the planet – that accolade goes to our oceans, followed up by our soils – but planting trees are a great way to capture some CO2 and keep it locked up, so that it does not contribute to warming our climate to a ridiculous (that means inhospitable) level.
We decided that in June, for every sale we had online we would plant trees here in the UK. It helps our landscape become a place full of woodlands, encouraging birds and bees and other insects to find home, improve their food chain and generally make the UK a more beautiful place to live.
Who wants to live in a denuded, harsh landscape?
Not us.
How To Plant A Tree In The UK
We don’t currently have the space here at Modern Mint to plant a tree for every sale from our online shop, but there are places who can make it happen for you – and they are fantastic organisations to support.
The first, and the one we will be using for this tree planting project, is Village Farm.
We love Village Farm and what they are doing. We have written about them before and they were an inspiration for our capture carbon project. Do check them out.
The other place we suggest you look at is the Trees For Life project, who are restoring the Caledonian Forest and rewilding the landscape in the Scottish Highlands. It is quite something.
So far we will be planting 15 trees here in the UK, from sales online in June.
If you want to make that number bigger, either go visit our shop and make an order – it can be the cheapest thing, it really does not matter. We will still plant a tree. Or visit either Village Farm or the Trees for Life project and ‘start a grove’ of your own.
Planting trees in the UK is a great thing to do. Go make it happen – for Queen, for country… and for your future, most importantly!
Start of the Whitby Topiary Library
I have been offered a space here in the centre of Whitby, south-facing aspect, with some raised beds in, so that I can make a Topiary Library. In my head, a topiary library is a place to showcase the common (and then not so common) shapes you can make out of topiary. With classical topiary plants, as well as some more unusual pieces. This Topiary Library can act as a reference for people to learn more about pruning and clipping. The space is small but the aspect is great and the beds are deep enough to put some plants in. …
Delivery After Dark – From the Makers of The Amelia Project
Last week I spent most nights stood in cold water streams on the moors of North Yorkshire, helping to film a new project called Delivery After Dark from the makers of the Amelia Project. I worked on the Amelia Project back at the end of 2024, lending my terrible vocal talents to a small part in the episode Didius Julianus. But this project is something new – and exciting! – and thankfully only needed me to be filmed, rather than to actually say anything. But not only did I have to stand in cold moving water at midnight, I also …
Modern Topiary (The Book) – Message From Lady Clippers, And Others!
My topiary book – Modern Topiary – has recently been put out as a PDF, which can be read for free. (Have a look here to download and read/share it!) Then last week I received a lovely email from Ann Perkowski of Lady Clippers, who are topiary and pruning specialists in New York (Ann is a brilliant pruning teacher too, who teaches at New York Botanical Garden… check out her work and Lady Clippers website.) Hi Darren, I had to write you how much I love reading your Modern Topiary. I’m not sure I’ll ever be quite done with it because I’m …