Abbey Fields Commemorative Tree Planting Event

21st January 2023

It was one of those magically fine winter January early mornings. The overnight frost had carefully traced in shades of sparkling white every detail of the landscape – every blade of grass, every leaf and every branch of every tree – breath-taking. Long Meadow is a 4.5-acre wildflower meadow, bordered by the Histon Brook and situated off Park Lane in Histon.  It looked its very winter best.

As the morning wore on about 150 people assembled under an unbelievably blue sky. Hot mulled wine helped to sharpen the sense of celebration. We were there to mark a special moment in time for this land which has been used as a hay meadow, and probably also summer pasture in the ancient past. Through the Abbey Fields project, formed by local people in 2021, Long Meadow and also Croft Close Set-aside (CCSA) will be saved in perpetuity for and by the community. For a gallery of the day’s pictures please click here.

 At the heart of the day’s event was the transfer of a sapling – a descendent of the veteran oak on CCSA - to  Long Meadow - so linking the two sites. The 450-year-old great oak was clearly visible on the horizon, towering over its neighbours in the distance. One day our sapling will be a worthy successor to the huge sycamore that once dominated Long Meadow and whose habitat monolith stands guard nearby.

Rob Bensted-Smith, the chair of Histon & Impington Green Spaces, welcomed all and set the scene by tracing the events that had led to the day. He told us that an amazing £400,000 has been raised in just over one year – so the project is well on its way to meeting the target needed to secure and then maintain the land. He mentioned the many people who have been involved in the project. Three standout and deserved special mention:

  • Howard Biddle whose interest and energy started the ball rolling;

  • Sally London for her special pledge that made all this possible; and

  • Anthony and Bogna Jenking for personally arranging the bridging finance.

  • And finally, Rob highlighted the role of the Parish Council which underwrote the project.

Caroline Chivers kindly agreed to plant the sapling with the help of 15  local children. Caroline’s family has been associated with and helped to shape the villages of Histon and Impington over the last century – so this was another connection of the past to the present and the future. Caroline very much welcomed this project as a fantastic example of what can be achieved with the environment through community action.

Rob Bensted-Smith delivering his speech

Caroline Chivers delivers the first of many spadefuls of earth

One of several children who helped to plant the tree

The planting of a descendant of the veteran oak of CCSA in Long Meadow symbolically points to both continuity and renewal. Thank you to all who took part and for all those using and taking care of this land in so many different ways. You can see a gallery of the photos taken on the day here.

Many thanks go to Abbey Fields volunteers without whom the event could not have taken place – Rhian Bond, Guy Richardson, Sarah Richardson, Julie Jocelyn, Jan Morrison, Jayne Russell, David Jenkins, Barbara Fertig, Chris Thompson, Pene Nudds and Daphne Fisher – and to Caron Brett, John and Linda Hoppett, Suzanne Sheerman and Suzanne Irwin for help with distributing the event programme. Thanks also to Amy Murrell for the professional photography and to Edd Stonham of Avanit for the sound system, and to Chivers Farms Ltd for the erection of permanent protection for the sapling.

Foundation Croft Certificates have been issued to many of the original donors that have underpinned the project. These certificates will continue to be issued until all the land is secure – by around April or May of this year – so there is still time for more people and businesses to be involved as Founders of the Abbey Fields project.

Arnold Fertig

Abbey Fields Team

The sapling on the morning after. The veteran oak can be seen in the background.