Walk Under the Trees

A woman in a green wool jacket looking at the bark of a tree through a handheld microscope.

A group of adults and children in bright coloured waterproof jackets bending down looking at and holding decaying wood

image of a tree truck with holes made by a beetle

A group of adults stood on sandy soil by a lake

About This Project

When we look at a tree we are only seeing half of the plant!

Walk Under the Trees is about adventuring underground with a bit of knowledge and a lot of imagination.

It takes the form of a guided walk which sits somewhere between mindful, playful and scientific. As we walk and talk I encourage people to consider the soil and marvel at the microscopic and hidden ecology around the trees and beneath our feet.

Soil is one of the least understood parts of nature and is only now getting the recognition it deserves as vital for biodiversity and climate resilience. Soil is the source of 95% of human’s food; it also provides a social, cultural and creative sense of belonging and connection to place.

Afterall, what does it mean to feel rooted?

The walk can take different forms to suit a wide variety of groups and locations, check out the options below.

Discover the soil web

Meet living ‘characters’ and physical characteristics of the soil through riddles and aboveground clues about what is going on belowground. We finish the walk by creating a giant soil cycles web.

Collective compost

Create a collective poem, adding new lines about where the walk pauses and where the conversations go. This version is the most adaptable to different lengths of time and less green spaces.

The invisible and indivisible

Pick a prompt card or object – let it inspire discussions, games and which way the walk goes next.
This is the most freeform version with the option of culminating in creating a collective artwork.

Whichever version of the journey you take, I will introduce some of the characters that exist belowground and we will take time observe the patterns and interactions of aboveground animals, fungi and plants which we often wizz past without noting.

The format is informal, getting side tracked is welcomed, and everyone will be welcome to share what they know or imagine of the world underfoot.

This is an ongoing project, one of the many spawned by Underfoot.
It is adaptable to any setting with trees and for any age group so please get in touch if you’d like to Walk Under the Trees in your area.

Thank you so so much for organising such workshops for us. The topic was amazing and we both sisters learned a lots about beautiful world wide trees.
We both love the poem - it was five star workshop.

Participant of a community walk at Kew Gardens.

Dead Wood is Dead Good

While we’re here, a little shout out for my attempt to get #deadwoodappriciationsociety trending.
Dead wood is a vital part of woodland and park eco-systems so give a little appriciation to everything that makes up lively logs when you come across them.