Planting Guide
A short guide to choosing and planting your blossom tree. Planning something bigger, like a churchyard, school field, farm or estate? Read the guide for bigger projects.
Professor David Hill CBE, Founder and President, Foundation For Nature“The Easter Trees planting guidance covers the bases well. It gives people the correct pointers and the information they need so as not to impact on sites of nature conservation importance, and rightly recommends trees of local provenance that you would expect to find in the ecosystem, in preference to non-natives.”
Choosing your tree
Any blossom tree that suits your space can be an Easter Tree. Planting at home? Pick one you love. Joining a community planting? Follow the palette the landowner has set - they’ve chosen species that suit their site, soil and aftercare.
Native first
A native tree is the loveliest first choice: it belongs in the British landscape and does the most for local wildlife. Several natives blossom as beautifully as any ornamental - wild cherry, bird cherry, blackthorn (the white froth in the spring hedgerows), hawthorn (the ‘May’), crab apple and rowan. Reach for an ornamental cherry when you want something for a pot, a small courtyard, or a formal effect a native can’t give. It’s native first, not native only - in your own garden, plant whatever brings you joy.
Local provenance comes first too. Where a tree is going into open ground rather than a pot, the ideal is a native species of local or regional provenance: one you would expect to find growing in your own bit of the country, raised from seed gathered near it. That tree is already suited to your soil and weather, and it slots into the ecosystem that is there. Anything else is a deliberate choice for a good reason - a container, a courtyard, a formal setting - rather than the default.
Right tree, right place
Match the tree to the spot: its final size, the soil, and how much room the roots have. Near buildings or graves, choose small, shallow-rooted trees. Buy UK-grown stock from a nursery that can tell you where the tree was raised - it helps keep tree diseases out and gives your tree the best start. More on choosing and biosecurity in the tree guide →
Blossom in spring, fruit in autumn: orchards
Some of the most rewarding plantings are orchards. Britain has a wonderful heritage of local apple, pear, plum, damson and cherry varieties, many named after the very places they came from. An orchard blossoms in spring and feeds a community in autumn - and traditional orchards are a precious wildlife habitat in their own right.
A churchyard, school, park, farm or community project? The landowner sets the species palette, and it’s worth choosing native, local-provenance trees suited to the site. Your local Woodland Trust or Wildlife Trust will happily advise on what belongs in your area - and we’re always glad to help you think it through.