GoodGym Barnet at the Tiny Forest Gathering

This saturday four of us from GoodGym Barnet – Paul, Daniel,Peter and Steven joined the annual Earthwatch celebration for southern Tree Keepers, starting at Mutton Brook’s Tiny Forest and ending at the Barnwood community space in Tarling Road.

Daniel and Paul kicked things off with a spot of litter picking on the way and even more at the site itself proving that tree care sometimes starts with crisp packets and bottle tops.

We met Divya from Earthwatch, who was expecting around 40 people. In the end, about 15 hardy souls turned up – which just meant more space (and snacks) for us. After a warm welcome, we loosened up with an icebreaker - strike the pose of your favourite tree. Cue a forest of humans swaying in the imaginary breeze.

The science chat that followed was a fascinating update on Barnet’s first Tiny Forest now three years old and one of the most monitored in the UK. Citizen scientists have logged growth, species diversity, and environmental benefits. Birch and willow are currently the local heavyweights, shooting up faster than other species planted at the same time elsewhere.

We also heard about three new experimental Tiny Forest plots quickly nicknamed Alpha, Beta, and Charlie: ( it’s about time we gave them a name looking uphill from left to right) • Alpha – planted with cardboard sheet mulch (now a weed haven) • Beta – each tree given a dose of biochar compost • Charlie – standard digging, compost, and mulch approach

Some of these plots even include lab-grown saplings raised in constant, season-free conditions. Over the next year or two, citizen science will reveal which method works best. It’s easy to join in: all you need is a smartphone to upload observations. Perfect for curious families.

From there, we walked to Barnwood, collecting natural curiosities along the way from fallen apples to lichen-covered twigs. Barnwood’s green heart, with its teaching area and wildlife-friendly planting, was the ideal spot for lunch and the next activity: creating zines (mini handmade books) inspired by our Tiny Forest experiences. Armed with old magazines, scissors, and glue, we cut and collaged our ideas about trees, nature, and community.

The day ended with a powerful reminder from Barnwood’s Leo: “Nature is our life-support system neglect it at our own risk.” We each wrote a letter to our future selves, imagining what we’d achieve for the environment in the next six months. These will arrive in our postboxes later this year a little nudge from our past selves to keep going.

A huge thanks to Earthwatch for bringing us together. Tiny Forests aren’t just about planting trees they’re about planting ideas, friendships, and care for the place we live. We’ll be back next year, and in the meantime, we’ll keep watering, weeding, measuring… and waving like trees in the wind.