CHILDREN have been learning about their natural environment as they help to plant new trees at a community woodland near Liskeard.

Pupils from Pensilva Primary School joined University of Plymouth researchers at Tregovenek – a newly forming community farm at Pentiddy.

During a jam packed day of learning the group had the chance to sow chestnuts and acorns that had started to sprout, and planted one-year-old saplings in the new tree nursery at Tregovenek. These trees will eventually be planted in the hedges around the farm.

After collecting some natural treasures, the young scientists were invited to stand around a fire and introduced to the idea of ‘The Children’s Fire’ - something central to Tregovenek.

“It’s the idea that all our decisions and plans for the farm are for the benefit of future generations of all beings,” explained Ele Waters. “Bringing people together to learn how we can work with each other and with nature is at the heart of Tregovenek’s vision for creating a community farm

“We’re very grateful to the University’s Get Involved award for the opportunity to work with the local school and the university of Plymouth. We’re in the very early stages of setting up the farm, so building these relationships is crucially important. Following the success of this project both the University and the school are keen to establish long-term relationships with Tregovenek which is great news!”

Pensilva Primary School teacher Becky Palfrey said: “The children really enjoyed visiting the farm and learning more about nature. They certainly learned about the importance of trees and how we need to work together to look after our environment.”