In 2003 the conservation charity, International Tree Foundation, was looking to extend its Family Tree Scheme to more places. At the same time, Plymouth City Council wanted a better use for ‘Lane End’ – the field next to Cottage Field between Gilbert Lane and Jubilee Row – and decided to make it available. Football and cricket had been played there but paths on its boundaries were too close for safety.
‘Trees of the World’ was agreed as the planting theme and areas were allocated for trees from each continent to echo the theme of discovery used for the Seven Continents Adventure Playground which opened in 2003.
Once the agreement had been signed, an informal launch event took place in 2004 when Councillor Peter Smith, Cabinet Member for Sports, Leisure and Culture, planted the first tree and formally unveiled the interpretation panel. The tree was a Monkey Puzzle and it lasted only a few months before it disappeared, presumably stolen.
The first donations were received in October 2004 and more followed in 2005. The first planting session was held during National Tree Week 2005 on the last Saturday of November when volunteers planted twenty-three new trees. The scheme ran until 2022 when space for further plantings became limited.
