TREE DETECTIVES!

Tree & Plant Identification

Saturday 7th November 2026
10:00am–12:30pm
The Diamond Wood, Andover

For ages 12–15 years
Keen and enthusiastic 11-year-olds may also be accepted.

Think you can tell one tree from another? Can you identify a tree when all the leaves have disappeared? Join Tree Ents & Skylarks Youth Club for a woodland adventure all about becoming a real-life Tree Detective!

What will we do?

We'll begin by exploring the woodland and carrying out a quick safety check before heading out on a winter tree and plant identification adventure.

Using field guides and our detective skills, we'll look for clues such as:

🌳 Bark
🌿 Buds
🍂 Leaves
🔎 Shape and surroundings

We'll discover what information ecologists use to identify trees and plants — even in winter!

Make Your Own ID Guide!

You'll then become the expert!

We'll choose plants and trees to investigate and create our own mini identification guides, deciding what information is most useful and what clues will help someone else identify a species.

Then comes the challenge...

Swap your guide!

Can you use someone else's guide to identify the right tree or plant?

We'll discover how scientists and ecologists communicate information clearly and what makes a great field guide.

Your Ideas Matter!

We'll also start thinking about what trees need to survive and how the environment around them can affect the way they grow.

Your discoveries and questions will help shape future sessions as we continue our Junior Forester Award adventure.

Come and explore, discover and help build the Youth Club from the very beginning!

Costs

• FREE for ATU Junior Members

• £30 per seasonal block of six sessions for non-members

The cost includes all six sessions and the seasonal camp out. Payment is made in advance for each six-session block. BOOK YOU SPOT HERE!