Community volunteers assisted by Orange City Council Staff are set to plant 600 new trees this Sunday at the back of the Bloomfield hospital site, which has been chosen as the focus for this year’s National Tree Day event in Orange.

Orange Mayor and chair of Orange City Council’s Park, Trees and Waterways Committee, Cr Reg Kidd said the event is a good opportunity to build connections between local families and areas of bushland.

“National Tree Day has a long history in Australia, and it’s a great opportunity for parents and their children to spend time together planting new trees in a key piece of local bushland,” Cr Kidd said.

He said given the dry conditions the ground is likely to be very hard for volunteers to dig with a shovel, so a council team will be on site in the coming days with a borer to dig the holes for the new trees.

“As well as Orange City Council, members of the Bloomfield Bushland Advisory Group, the Environmentally Concerned Citizens of Orange (ECCO) and the Orange Field Naturalists and Conservation Society are involved in this event. All we need now is a good roll-up of tree planters on Sunday morning,” said Cr Kidd

The site, across the road from the Gosling Creek reserve has walking trails and is a key passive recreation area for locals, said Orange City Council’s Environmental Sustainability Committee chair, Cr Stephen Nugent.

“It’s fantastic that the community of Orange still has large areas of native bush so close to residential areas,” Cr Nugent said.

“While there are large established trees in this area that provide habitat, we need to give the next generation of trees a good start. The new trees will have corflute guards installed around the base of new trees to protect the young plants from local wildlife.”

He said the land is managed by Health authorities, who’ve built the walking paths, but is open to the community. The new plantings will be positioned along the paths.

Schools Tree Day and National Tree Day are Australia’s largest annual tree-planting and nature care events and take place on Friday 27 July and Sunday 29 July. This is an initiative organised by Planet Ark in partnership with Toyota Australia which provides on-the-ground support at tree planting sites across Australia.

Sunday’s event runs from 10 am to 1pm on Sunday 29 July. The site on Bloomfield Road will be signposted and a free BBQ available.

Volunteers are encouraged to wear warm clothing and sensible shoes.