The Archbishop of Canterbury planted a fig tree at Lambeth Palace this morning as part of The Queen’s Green Canopy to celebrate Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee.
Archbishop Justin Welby was joined by the Bishop of Norwich, Graham Usher, who is the lead bishop for the Church of England on environmental issues, and by Colonel Dan Rex, the CEO of The Queen’s Green Canopy.
The Archbishop has previously joined other faith leaders in a special video message to urge communities to “Plant a Tree for the Jubilee” in honour of Her Majesty’s service to the nation, as part of The Queen’s Green Canopy initiative.
The Archbishop of Canterbury said: “The beauty of trees reminds us of our responsibility to care for God’s creation, for each other and for generations to come. It’s a fitting tribute to Her Majesty The Queen’s seven decades of service, and the trees we plant this year will be a sign of our gratitude and celebration of this remarkable occasion for many decades to come. I encourage everyone to get involved in the Queen's Green Canopy, and plant a tree to celebrate Her Majesty's Platinum Jubilee.”
The Bishop of Norwich, Graham Usher, said: “Planting a tree is always about expressing hope in the future and is a gift to the rest of creation, as well as future generations. Over seven decades, Her Majesty The Queen has planted more than 1,500 trees and it is fitting that Her Majesty has chosen to mark her Platinum Jubilee by encouraging us to join up this tree canopy. These trees will remind us of the gift Her Majesty is to this nation and the Commonwealth, as well as the hope-filled future we look to for the whole of creation.”
CEO of The Queen’s Green Canopy, Dan Rex, said: “The Church of England was a very early supporter of The Queen’s Green Canopy and I am delighted and grateful to participate in this special planting at Lambeth Palace with Archbishop Justin and Bishop Graham. It has been wonderful to witness communities coming together to plant trees in parishes across the nation and children from the Church of England primary schools participating in the Jubilee Young Forester’s Award, seeding hope and knowledge for the future”.
The Archbishop’s fig tree will be uploaded to the QGC Map joining the growing network of Jubilee trees planted across the nation.
The Queen’s Green Canopy
The Queen’s Green Canopy (QGC) is a unique tree planting initiative created to mark Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022 which invites people from across the United Kingdom to “Plant a Tree for the Jubilee”.
Everyone from individuals to Scout and Girlguiding groups, villages, cities, counties, schools and corporates will be encouraged to play their part to enhance our environment by planting trees during the official planting season between October to March. Tree planting will commence again in October 2022, through to the end of the Jubilee year.
With a focus on planting sustainably, the QGC will encourage tree planting to create a legacy in honour of The Queen’s leadership of the Nation, which will benefit future generations.
As well as inviting the planting of new trees, The Queen’s Green Canopy will dedicate a network of 70 Ancient Woodlands across the United Kingdom and identify 70 Ancient Trees to celebrate Her Majesty’s 70 years of service.
By inviting everyone to plant considerable numbers of new trees throughout the country, the QGC seeks to highlight the significant value of trees and woodlands as nature’s simple but highly effective way to clean the air we breathe, slow the impact of climate change, create important wildlife habitats and improve our general health and wellbeing.