400,000 trees planted in roadwork schemes have died

The government-owned company provided data for only nine of its 38 big road projects after a freedom of information request by The Times, so the true figure is likely to be much higher.

At Chowns Mill A45/A6 junction at Higham Ferrers, Northamptonshire, the Tory MPs Peter Bone and Tom Pursglove attended a ceremony under two years ago to mark the planting of the final few of about 2,500 saplings.

READ MORE: UK's tree-planting rates fall to lowest levels in five years

Three quarters of the total planted later died. The rate was the worst of the nine schemes National Highways provided data for. Of 945,000 trees planted by the company since 2018, at least 405,000 have died.

Experts said the figures show that organisations are still focusing too much solely on how many trees are being planted, rather than the aftercare which ensures their survival. They also think that increasing extreme weather under climate change, such as prolonged hot and dry spells, is playing a role in driving up the deaths.

On average 30.4 per cent died across the nine projects — the equivalent of a small forest was lost in one highly publicised case.

About 45 per cent of 860,000 trees along a new stretch of the A14 in Cambridgeshire died while being established. The saplings were planted to compensate for the felling of mature trees during the project.

The trees were planted at the end of the 2020 planting season, just as the country went into drought. Last year, when there was a 40C heatwave, local residents watched as the trees failed.

Nearby is a thriving community woodland, which locals say highlights exactly how badly National Highways’ trees were neglected. Residents planted the trees, mulched each one, watered and regularly monitored them.

The road-building agency has said it will replant the trees, starting in the planting season from this October.

John Parker, chief executive of the Arboricultural Association (AA), said projects should be planned for maximum survival, rather than the maximum number of trees planted. 

“These figures reaffirm that the focus still needs to move further towards tree establishment than planting, looking at ensuring maintenance and tree aftercare plans are in place for such projects,” he said.

John Parker said the data showed the importance of aftercare in planting projects (Image: eA/JH)

Parker said tree watering was vital, as the “extreme heat” of recent summers was likely to have contributed to the deaths.

National Highways is reviewing its contractors for tree-planting schemes and said trees die “for a variety of reasons”. Tom Clancy, group leader of environmental delivery support at National Highways, said: “We take our responsibility to the environment very seriously and are always exploring ways we can enhance the local landscape.”