The Zephaniah Forest
Birmingham TreePeople are nature-loving urban forest volunteers with the aim to plant, protect and promote trees and the urban forest.
About Us
Birmingham TreePeople are urban forest volunteers that gather information about local trees, get involved in tree matters, and practical projects in the urban environment. Trees are good!
Our Trees
If you want to find out more about the trees that we are looking after, and some of the projects we have been undertaking, take a look at this useful section including the BTP TreePlotter map.
UFV
Would you like to join us and our diverse network of enthusiastic urban forest volunteers in Birmingham? Find out everything you need to know about the volunteer roles here.
Tree City
In 2019, Birmingham TreePeople were granted the status of Tree City of the World, which is a great honour for our green, flourishing city. Click here to find out why we received it.
UFMP
We are proud to have commissioned the Urban Forest Master Plan for the city with BCC, in conjunction with Treeconomics and Nature Based Solutions Institute – but what is it that plan all about?
Street Trees
We are currently undergoing a survey of Birmingham’s street trees, assessing newly planted trees, and we are actively encouraging volunteers to get involved – let us know if you’d like to volunteer.
Tree Trails
Do you like walking in the park (with or without children)? The Friends’ tree trails are available in various parks across Birmingham, and it’s just like Pokémon Go for trees, so we’ve plotted them online.
Training
BTP run free, monthly training sessions for urban forest volunteers on trees, tree care and woodlands. However, we also provide a paid L2 Arboriculture course, if you’d like to learn more.
Increasing Birmingham’s canopy cover, one tree at a time.
Tree Planting and Maintenance
Tree Selection
If you aren’t sure where to start when it comes to planting, it’s the tree; one of the most important things is choosing the right species for the right location. This ensures the tree flourishes in its new place. “Right tree, right place.”
Tree Planting
Once the tree has been selected for the location, this page has a step-by-step guide to planting a new tree for your home or community, with the do’s, dont’s, and definitely’s of all the tree planting stages, ensuring survival of your tree.
Tree Care
Once the trees are planted, it’s our responsibility to water them and provide the aftercare they need to grow. Here are some top tips on how to look after new and old trees. We encourage you to water your local trees!
Treemembrance
This commemorative tree programme aims to further add new trees to Birmingham’s urban forest. This gives the sponsor the opportunity to commemorate or memorialise an event or person in a uniquely beautiful way.
What’s New with the TreePeople?
The BZ Forest
The Benjamin Zephaniah Family Legacy Group are working with us to fundraise, to plant a mini forest of 65 trees, for 65 years of Benjamin’s life. We are also hosting a poetry competition with Bradley Taylor!
Orchards
The purpose of the programme is to better understand the fruit tree resources already present within city orchards, bring under-managed fruit trees into management, and plant more fruit trees for communities to enjoy.
Tree Equity
Equity has been an important factor in the decisions we’ve made for our tree strategy. Through our Urban Forest Master Plan, and the Urban Forest Accelerator, increasing canopy cover in priority wards has been equity focused.
The Trustees
Have you ever wondered who our dedicated Trustees are? They are hardworking industry professionals, who volunteer for the charity and provide their time and services. Find out more about our board members and their roles.
Updates with Birmingham TreePeople
Our Blog
Shade of the Canopy is a blog by TreePeople, for TreePeople. It includes articles about our events, workshops, training, videos, and everything in between. Stay updated with our new blog page. See the reel below for our most recent entries and posts.
Treevents
This brand new rolling events slider will help keep our urban forest volunteers – not to mention our Trustees and employees – up-to-date with our workshops, activities, surveys, planting, training, projects, and much more. There’s plenty going on!
Newsletters
We have recently begun circulating monthly – Birmingham Roots – and fortnightly – The Droplet – newsletters for our mailing list. This archive holds all the issues, if you prefer not to download. We accept articles/adverts from friend groups.
Podcasts
These recorded interviews are about different aspects of trees, by various experts within the industry, logged here in the Podcast (and videos) Archive. Look back on the best classes and talks, concerning all manner of tree-related topics at your leisure.
- The Final Zephaniah Forest PlantingThe Zephaniah Forest has been completed in a final planting session. In Burbury Park, Newtown, there are now 65 new trees signifying each year of a life well-lived and respected, dedicated to Benjamin Zephaniah. In a final celebratory planting session, the legacy forest dedicated to Benjamin was completed by returning… Read more: The Final Zephaniah Forest Planting
- Refugee & Migrant Centre Zephaniah Tree PlantingWe were joined by friends from the Refugee and Migrant Centre, on 6th February 2025, to help plant nine more trees in The Zephaniah Forest. Together we spent the morning digging holes and carefully unwrapping the trees, ready for their new home in Burbury Park. Millicent Springer, sister of Benjamin… Read more: Refugee & Migrant Centre Zephaniah Tree Planting
- Go Green Week with BCUWe teamed up with Birmingham City University students for Go Green Week on Friday 30th January. The keen squad joined Matt and Charley – with support from Birmingham City Council Woodlands Team’s Leon and Nick – to fulfill some of our targets towards the Urban Forest Masterplan for Birmingham. We… Read more: Go Green Week with BCU
Plant your seeds here…
L2 Arboriculture
Arboriculture is defined as the study, cultivation, and management of trees, shrubs, vines, and other perennial woody plants. The L2 Certificate in Arboriculture is designed for anyone working in the sector, in both public and private, whether as paid staff or voluntary support. The course aims to complement their training and experience, and to provide evidence of their knowledge of arboriculture. Due to the lack of skills in this area of work, we are providing this course as a way to encourage learning and careers, and eventually will offer L4 as well. Even if you’re a beginner, all applicants are welcome, so if you’ve wanted to learn more about trees for a long time, now is your moment!
Free Training
Are you a tree hugger? Do you love nature and the environment? Would you like to learn more about trees? BTP run a free training course for our urban forest volunteers, covering basic arboricultural knowledge and skills. Training sessions take place on the third Saturday of the month, from 10am – 12pm. Reminders circulate by using the mailing list, and the sessions are a mix of online seminars and in-person workshops. To join our regular sessions, or to try one as a taste to see if it’s for you, please contact us or email: [email protected].
… and grow with the trees.
Trees Please
Leave de trees please
Cause de trees
Work wid de breeze
To put all living tings at ease,
So leave de trees please.
Yu see
Down in Somerset, England,
I know a tree
Dat is one thousand
An five hundred years old.
Dat is a wise tree
Dat is a tree
I need
To talk to,
Dat is a tree
We animals should listen to.
For millions of animals
Trees are a home,
Trees can help shelter yu home,
So leave de trees alone.
Trees mek oxygen.
Let me say dat again:
Trees mek oxygen,
So mek a tree yu fren.
Leave de trees please
Cause de trees
Work wid de breeze
To put all living tings at ease,
An they help de birds and bees
Old an wise are all of these,
So leave de trees please
Juss
Leave de trees please.
Benjamin Zephaniah
Birmingham TreePeople are currently working with The Benjamin Zephaniah Family Legacy Group to plant The Zephaniah Forest: 65 trees for 65 years of his life, located in Burbury Park, Newtown, Birmingham. Visit the new webpage and fundraiser by clicking on the images of Benjamin, and please let us know if you’d like to get involved in a wonderful legacy project for a fantastic Brummie!
