Following on from the article in a previous edition of Your Postcode, further progress has been made and continues.
Marian Forster, local Emsworth artist designed a beautiful sign to welcome visitors to the emerging arboretum. Guy Schofield one of our trustees manufactured and painted the sign which now graces the meadow and the entrance to the arboretum.
The mayor of Havant Councillor Rosie Raines visited the site on Saturday 24th June where she made a short speech of welcome, then she unveiled the sign by removing the Union Jack with “three cheers” from those in attendance. We are hugely indebted to the Emsworth Residents Forum who sponsored the creation and manufacture of this beautiful sign.
Work goes on to select and purchase 60+ trees that will be planted in the coming autumn. A provisional date of 2nd December has been agreed and by then we will have planted about 150 small trees that with care and attention, will flourish in the coming years. We invite you to consider attending this important occasion, where you can be assured of a warm welcome.
Our website www.evma.org.uk will, nearer the time, give full details of this planting.
The six acre site of the arboretum sits almost in the middle of the meadow, so currently donors and visitors with walking disabilities may find access difficult.
In order to overcome this, we plan to build a durable accessible path from the car park to the beginning of the arboretum. We are currently in discussions with Havant Borough Council as to how best this can be achieved to allow access for all to the whole of the 42 acres of this wonderful community open space.
The Ems Valley Memorial Arboretum is a unique community project. It is a place where loved ones will be remembered and celebrated for posterity, whilst enhancing the local environment. We would be delighted to encourage and help other villages and communities in the borough achieve something similar If you would like to donate, or find out more about setting up an arboretum, go to our website: https://evma.org.uk/