- Promote public learning and engagement with trees, the environment, and environmental change.
- Create and maintain a registry of trees across Europe to monitor their growth and health.
- Contribute to scientific understanding of the impacts of environmental stress on tree health.
- Develop an international volunteer network that could function as an early warning system of new threats to trees.
Tree health
Our trees are facing unprecedented environmental change, over and above existing threats from pollution and land use change.
A number of new tree diseases and pests have impacted our trees in recent years; the horse chestnut leaf miner, acute oak decline, and red band needle blight to name a few. Scientists are working hard to monitor and understand these and other pests and diseases. However, they are small teams and increasingly stretched, both in terms of the growing demand for their expertise, and by tightening budgets. This is where the public can help and make a difference.
The Sylva Foundation has developed TreeWatch as a major initiative aiming to increase society’s connection with trees and environmental change, with the additional aim of enabling the general public to contribute to tree health surveillance via ‘citizen science’ activities. We are working in collaboration with EarthWatch, The Royal Horticultural Society, The Tree Council and Forest Research.
How TreeWatch works
Volunteers are encouraged to 'adopt' a tree or trees, and to observe and record changes in their growth and health through regular surveys. The focus for collecting information is via this survey pages where anyone can map a tree's location and attach data, such as measurements, notes and photos. The results of surveys and more information of all the trees that are part of TreeWatch can be seen on the explore page.
TreeWatch is open to anyone and getting involved is completely free. Volunteers are encouraged to read the Volunteer Safety Guidelines (pdf download). All volunteers must agree to the Terms and Conditions when creating a TreeWatch account.
