City Recreation Ground
Planted in March 2013 in the pouring rain. This did nothing to deter to 20-odd supporters who turned out, ably supported by the then-Mayor of Newbury Arthur Johnson and his deputy Anthony Pick - both are in the photo above Arthur with his chain of office and Anthony wearing the fedora.
16 trees were planted, 14 courtesy of Waitrose's anniversary celebrations and 2 local varieties.
16 trees were planted, 14 courtesy of Waitrose's anniversary celebrations and 2 local varieties.
One tree was lost to disease in 2015, and the others have grown quite slowly compared to other sites. In 2022 three more trees were planted by a local IT company as part of Earth Day events that year and in the same year the Town Council planed a pear orchard nearby as part of a replanting and refresh of the site.
City Rec was the site of 2024's Wassail where we also took the opportunity to add compost & manure around each tree and hopefully this will gives the trees a boost.
Nearby, in March 2014, 3 more trees were planted further south at the corner of Andover Road and Bartlemy Road - our first collaboration with West Berkshire Council.