Friends of Westonbirt Arboretum

Blog - Blog

Unveiling the new Community Shelter

After years of planning, and thanks to members and funders for giving this project a chance to come to life, the brand-new Community Shelter has been unveiled at Westonbirt, The National Arboretum.

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Running the 2022 Westonbirt 10K

With the completion of the Westonbirt 10K on 12 May, we caught up with Julia, our Westonbirt Runner, to find out how it went…...

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Trail Running Kit List

If you're looking for expert tips on trail running then check out this blog from Runners Need...

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Community Shelter update - making the structural skeleton

Over the last few weeks, the Community Shelter has started to take shape with the structural skeleton in place. Take a look at the timelapses below to find out more...

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Visiting Runners Need

As Julia prepares for the Westonbirt 10K she went to Runners Need to have a gait analysis - find out what this is and why you should get one too! #AD...

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Meet Julia - Our Westonbirt Runner

This year we're pleased to announce Julia, our Supporter Services Manager, will be running for the trees at the 10K in May. We recently interviewed her so you can get to know her a little better...

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Community Shelter update - steam bending

Westonbirt's community participants have been using the ancient process of steam bending to create the shelter's arches. Find out more...

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Community Shelter update - Jan 2022

The build phase has started and we're thrilled to share some of the details with you...

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Winter highlight: Scots pine

The Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) was voted the national tree of Scotland in 2014 and is a member of the Pinaceae family, a conifer native to northern Europe.

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A fond farewell

During my time at Westonbirt, I could not have foreseen the challenges that were to face the Arboretum. However, I am proud to have seen the resilience of the staff on site and you our members and shareholders in the face of significant adversity.

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Winter highlight: Incense cedar

Our December tree of the month is the Incense cedar (Calocedrus decurrens), one of the most fire and drought-tolerant plants from California.

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Autumn highlight: Hollyberry cotoneaster

This month’s tree of the month is the Hollyberry cotoneaster, a species of shrub in the genus Cotoneaster within the rose family.

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Never a dull day at the 'birt'

It is always wonderful to hear compliments about the arboretum from visitors and industry peers. As Collection Manager, it makes me proud to have a degree of influence in how it all comes together to form the jewel in Forestry England’s crown.

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Zero waste by 2030

Posted in: Blog

Digging deep into Westonbirt's waste and a greener future. As part of Westonbirt's plan to get to net-zero by 2030 we've been working with an environmental consultancy, Avieco, to help develop a strategy for our waste and energy.

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