ABOUT HARMONY WOODS
10000 children, 10000 trees, 10 years.
The Harmony Woods Project by Andover Trees United is a living landscape, dedicated to the notion that our young people are the planet’s future custodians and for them to succeed in this, they need us to teach them that it is possible, show them that small actions taken collectively can make a huge difference and thereby demonstrate leadership.
Tree planting, habitat restoration, and biodiversity enhancement matter; it is no good talking about what needs to be done, we have to do it. In the words of our young Climate Justice Ambassadors we must STOP TALKING AND START PLANTING (ref. Plant-for-the-Planet)
The Harmony Woods Project respects, creates and protects wild spaces for the benefit of both nature and people. While the legacy of our joint actions, putting children and young people at the centre, will provide a thriving home for wildlife and help to mitigate climate change, the process of creating it supports environmental education and community engagement through practical conservation.
(Above) Harmony Woods 2011 - 2026: From the first school tree nursery beds to the last time all schools came together to plant… and beyond (in process of being updated…)
Tree Planting at Harmony Woods
The creation of Harmony Woods was a 10-year planting project 2012-22. By working with all local schools and establishing an annual tree planting day in the school calendar, all children and young people in our community over that 10-year period were given the chance, collectively, to turn 12 acres of farmland into urban woodland, increasing biodiversity and providing a wealth of opportunities for learning in and about the environment.
The Diamond Wood - celebrating the late Queen’s Diamond Jubilee
The 12-acres planted by the children, named ‘Harmony Woods’, form part of a larger area of new woodland, 44 acres in total, located between the southern edge of the village of Enham Alamein and a large new housing estate, Augusta Park, on the northern side of Andover; the remaining 32 acres were planted en masse in 2012. Working with The Woodland Trust several years before planting started, Andover Trees United was able to secure the designation of ‘Diamond Wood’, one of 60 new 60-acre woods planted to commemorate the late Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee. Together with a further 16 acres near Basingstoke, they complete the Hampshire Diamond Wood.
Read more about the history of the site and the early days of the project.
From 2012…
… to 2022
Continuing The Tree Planting Beyond 2022
Tree Planting at Bury Hill Nature Reserve
Andover Trees United is dedicated to providing (and fully funding) a tree planting day for every child in our community beyond the end of the 10-year creation of Harmony Woods [February 2022]. Since then and in partnership with Test Valley Borough Council, the annual children’s tree planting weeks have taken place at the new Bury Hill Nature Reserve just outside Upper Clatford.
With Harmony Woods planting having started in the Diamond Jubilee year and completion taking place in the Platinum, it was very fitting to be able to continue planting a new piece of woodland in the same year, especially one which was to become a memorial to the late Queen.
The Ongoing Care of the Wood
A team of volunteers undertakes the care of the whole of the Diamond Wood using traditional management techniques, ensuring that the site is first and foremost a haven for wildlife.
This team meets every Monday, on the second Saturday of each month and on ‘extra’ days depending on the workload of a particular season. Haymaking, for example, needs a workforce every day for a week and wildflower planting days with school children are dependent on their schools.
To know whether our collective efforts are being successful, Nature in Harmony was established - an ongoing wildlife survey and community engagement project run by the charity’s ecology intern each year.
Learning, Friendship, Wellbeing
“Heading up to Harmony woods on a Monday morning is the perfect kickstart to the week. Whatever the weather, there is always a choice of tasks to tackle alongside a lively and happy crew, from pulling out invasive weeds in the pond to planting wild flowers, maintaining the existing wood and planting saplings with local school children.
It is a beautiful place in all seasons and I have learned new skills over the last few years. We have recently been trained to hedge lay the traditional way, wielding bill hooks and handsaws, all digits still intact! It is a very positive, welcoming and fun place to volunteer and is growing something unique for the whole local community.” ~ A member of the Conservation Crew [2026]
Why not pay us a visit…
… and support what we do.