Street Tree Champions
Eastbourne’s young street trees need a little help to get established, especially during long dry spells.
If there’s a young tree near your home, choosing just one to water regularly can make a real difference. You don’t need to sign up to help. But if you’d like to look after a particular tree, you can become its Tree Champion and help us keep track of how it’s doing.
1) Find your street tree
Find your tree on streets.treebourne.org to learn more about it, log when you’ve watered it, report any problems, or become its Tree Champion and help care for it as it grows.
2) Give the tree a good drink
Around 20 litres, roughly 2 watering cans
3) Water the right place
Pour half into the black watering tube and half slowly around the base
4) Repeat 1-2 times a week
During dry spells, ideally in the morning or evening
5) Let us know you’re helping
Scan the QR code on the tree to log your watering and help us keep track of how it’s doing. If the QR code is missing you can find your tree on https://streets.treebourne.org
Frequently asked questions
Early morning or evening is best, when it’s cooler and less water is lost through evaporation. But if a tree really needs water, don’t worry too much about the time of day. Watering it is more important than waiting for the perfect time.
Yes. Collected rainwater is ideal, and you can also use suitable grey water, such as leftover bath or shower water. Water from a dehumidifier or tumble dryer condenser can also be used.
Avoid water containing bleach, disinfectant, strong cleaning products, dishwasher salt or other harsh chemicals.
It’s very difficult to overwater a young street tree during dry weather. A good, deep watering once or twice a week is much better than giving it a small amount every day.
A little rain often isn’t enough to reach a young tree’s roots. If the soil still looks or feels dry beneath the surface, give it a good water. After prolonged or heavy rain, you can usually skip a watering.
Find your tree on streets.treebourne.org, select it on the map and click the water tab to log that you’ve watered it. You can also scan the QR code attached to the tree to go straight to its page.
Find the tree on streets.treebourne.org and use the report tab to let us know what you’ve noticed.
Newly planted trees have small, developing root systems, so they can’t yet reach as much moisture in the soil as established trees. Regular watering helps their roots grow out into the surrounding soil and gives them the best chance of becoming healthy, resilient trees.
Young street trees usually need extra care for their first few years while their root systems become established. During hot or dry spells, regular watering is especially important, even for trees that have been planted for several years.
Yes. The more people keeping an eye on a tree, the better. You can all log watering and report any problems, even if the tree already has a Tree Champion.
Our street trees were watered by contractors during their first three years after planting, which is the standard establishment period.
Since then, we’ve had several unusually hot and dry periods, and some young trees are still struggling to get fully established. That’s why we’re asking local people to help by giving nearby trees an occasional deep watering during dry spells.
Community watering doesn’t replace the council’s responsibilities, but it can make a real difference to a young tree’s chances of surviving prolonged drought.