New Peterborough trees planted as part of Sikh celebrations

Members of Peterborough Sikh Community planted five trees at Nene Park to celebrate the 550 th birthday of Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the founder of the Sikh faith.

The tree planting took place on the north side of the river Nene near Orton Staunch and was the first tree planting event of several over the next few years to plant a total of 550 new trees to commemorate this 550 th birthday. As well as Sikh community members present, including three generations of one family,

Peterborough’s Mayor was also there and gave a speech thanking Nene Park Trust and PECT for enabling this event to happen. Staff from Nene Park Trust and PECT were also present to celebrate and help with the planting.

Jagdev Singh, President of the Gurdwara Baba Budha Sabib ji, Peterborough said: “It was a momentous occasion in the lives of the Peterborough Sikhs who wished to create a legacy for Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s 550th celebrations. We are grateful to Nene Park Trust and PECT for making it happen. It is our contribution towards a better environment.”

Matthew Bradbury, CEO of Nene Park Trust said: “We are delighted that the Sikh community of Peterborough wanted to plant trees in Nene Park to celebrate the founder of the Sikh faith.

“These trees can also be enjoyed by our visitors for many years to come. Our new National Lottery Heritage Funded project, Peterborough’s Community Greenspace is likely to see more of this exciting work continue as we celebrate the many cultures and communities across Peterborough. “We encourage community groups to contact us if you would like to join the celebrations at Nene Park.”

The future tree planting project will continue along the north side of the river towards Bluebell Wood with two more planting events taking place before March 2020. The cost of the trees will be funded by the Sikh community’s own fundraising, with support from PECT as part of their Forest for Peterborough project.