The commemorative badge for Longitude Wood featured artwork by William Haynes, ex pupil of Whitgift Academy.

Mr. Lesley Donaldson, retired Surgeon and retired Rotarian.

Longitude Wood

Time Travel with Trees

Article by Dr. Robert M Jaggs-Fowler.

First printed in the Scunthorpe Telegraph, December 17, 2014.

A walk in the woods can reduce stress, lower blood-pressure, improve the function of the heart and lungs, exercise muscles and joints, assist in weight loss and give you that overall elusive ‘feel-good factor’.

The enormous pleasure I observed in the faces of those involved in planting thousands of trees for the Longitude Wood, from children through to retired adults, the unemployed through to doctors, solicitors and a judge, physically demonstrated the love affair that we intrinsically have with trees in particular the natural world in general. The writer, Philip Pullman said ‘trees need to be lived in, whether by birds, insects, small children or the souls of poets.’ How right he is. In our hearts, we know the value trees and woods bring to our lives. They are there for us and for future generations, and should be valued and nurtured.

 Working with the Woodland Trust, the John Harrison Foundation has laid down a beneficial marker for our future. For the sake of our health and well-being, let us hope for more of the same. In the meantime, after a busy week, I think I might go for a walk in the woods. I might even hug a tree or two.

Local resident talks about longitude wood.

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