It was at Sandringham that King George VI passed away and the young princess took accession to the throne. Moving west across the country to the 200-square mile National Forest which is taking root in the heart of England, the Woodland Trust is creating its flagship 2012 statement. The 460-acre Diamond Wood there is one of 60 planned across Britain, together with hundreds of smaller Jubilee Woods. Altogether some six million trees will be planted, a figure that does not include the oaks which are a part of smaller projects such as that at Highweek. Our approach to commemorating great national events has changed somewhat throughout the years.


When it was decided in the early part of the twentieth century that Newton Abbot needed to erect a memorial to those who had lost their lives in the first world war, the decision was taken to fell a beautiful oak at the junction of The Avenue, Queen Street and Devon Square and erect a statue in its place.


The sentiment is hard to criticise but, as the wave of tree planting that has swept Britain in this Diamond Jubilee year demonstrates, it is impossible to imagine something similar happening today. Hopefully our children are learning the


value of a healthy environment and of the need to put down strong roots for a vi- brant future.


Children from Highweek Primary School plant the oak sapling donated by the Royal Estate at Sandringham (right)


QUEEN’S DIAMOND JUBILEE 17


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