Are you are a regular visitor to your local woodland? If so, Track a Tree needs your help to record the spring timing (or phenology) of the UK’s woodland trees and the flowering plants that grow beneath them. Track a Tree aims to find out how much woodland species vary their seasonal timing, and how tree leafing affects the flowering of plants on the woodland floor.
We need volunteers to become citizen ecologists and record trees in their local woodland during spring, visiting on a weekly basis if possible. Track a Tree recorders are asked to monitor their chosen trees from before they budburst until they come into leaf, so the key recording period is usually between March and May. Track a Tree monitoring involves selecting a tree (or trees!) and revisiting it throughout spring to record its leafing stage and monitor the flowering plants beneath it.
As spring temperatures rise the leafing of trees is getting earlier and we are interested in testing whether woodland flowers can keep up with this change. With the help of citizen ecologists monitoring trees across the UK, we can see whether woodlands in warm parts of the country do as well as those from colder areas.
The Track a Tree project would suit anyone who regularly visits their local woodland; individuals, families, education groups… all are welcome to take part! Download the field guide from our website, get recording and share your observations to see how they compare with the rest of the UK.
