English gardeners urged to plant “tredges” to help meet national tree coverage goals by 2050

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) is encouraging English gardeners to embrace a new gardening concept called “tredges” – plantings that fall somewhere between trees and hedges in size – as part of a broader effort to significantly increase the country’s woodland coverage over the next 25 years.

This innovative approach draws inspiration from ancient woodland ecosystems and could transform England’s 25 million gardens into vital wildlife corridors while contributing to national environmental goals. Currently, the UK maintains only about 10% woodland coverage, but the government has set an ambitious target to increase this to at least 16.5% of England’s total land area by 2050.

The RHS recommends several native species particularly well-suited for tredge plantings, including beech (Fagus sylvatica), holly (Ilex aquifolium), common yew (Taxus baccata), and hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna). Interestingly, they also suggest western red cedar (Thuja plicata), demonstrating that some non-native species can still provide ecological benefits when thoughtfully integrated into garden landscapes.

By encouraging homeowners to think beyond traditional hedging and incorporate these medium-sized plantings, the initiative represents a grassroots approach to meeting large-scale environmental objectives. The concept acknowledges that while individual gardens may seem small, their collective impact across England’s millions of properties could play a meaningful role in habitat restoration and carbon sequestration efforts. This garden-level conservation strategy offers everyday citizens a practical way to contribute to national climate and biodiversity goals.