When something needs doing
By Fleur
@Fleura (31848)
United Kingdom
June 23, 2025 8:21am CST
Are you the kind of person who steps up when something needs doing?
I’m trying to be one of those people. In the past I often wanted to be, and thought of doing something, but then somehow didn’t get around to it.
If I saw litter on the roadside for example I would tut to myself but then walk past. To begin with I was embarrassed to be seen picking up other people’s litter. Then later I was too busy. Now I try to pick things up on the way past if I have time, or sometimes go out on a special errand.
Now this year our local district council have been planting new street trees. They have planted quite a selection of attractive trees, including various species of oak, rowan, flowering cherry, hickory, walnut, ginko and even magnolia. They all looked lovely in the spring. But they are quite big trees – about ten feet tall – not seedlings, and we have been having very dry weather the last couple of months.
The council did ask that local people could ‘adopt’ a nearby tree and water it, but I don’t know if they got much response.
Now apart from not wanting to see a tree in distress I also don’t want all our tax money to be wasted because the trees die from lack of water, so I determined I would try to water at least some of the ones in the village. I don’t know where they all are but I have seen at least 15 on the streets nearby, so I thought I would try to remember to take some water when I went out in the car and stop off on the way.
Of course I don’t go out in the car all that often, and I only have one 25 L (5 gallon) container. Taking buckets of water – even if only half full – isn’t really an option because in our village we have a mile and a half of speed bumps!
So I turned to my favourite site, Freegle, and asked if anyone had some suitable containers to spare. Lo and behold I was flooded with offers! And already one kind man has delivered three to my door! So I’m going to fill them all up and when I go to the library later I’ll take them in the car and give a few trees a drink.
Attractive trees along the streets really improve a place I think, making it look so much nicer, lifting everyone’s spirits, and having a valuable cooling effect on hot days too! Hopefully in years to come the trees will flourish and I’ll be able to congratulate myself for giving them a helping hand.
The trees in the photo are not the ones in question, just some I noticed in autumn. So much nicer to look at than just bare pavement!
All rights reserved. © Text and image copyright Fleur 2025.
8 people like this
8 responses
@DaddyEvil (151769)
• United States
23 Jun
The council should have made arrangements to keep the trees watered before purchasing them and planting them, in my opinion... I agree that it's nice that they've asked people to help but the responsibility ultimately lies with them to see that the investment isn't wasted.
When we walk somewhere, Pretty and I take a plastic bag with us to put trash in that we come across as we go to and fro. Pretty likes finding aluminum soda cans and will separate those out, have me crush them and add them to our collection of aluminum cans to recycle...
2 people like this
@Fleura (31848)
• United Kingdom
23 Jun
Yes I agree they really should have employed people to water them, I don't know why they didn't, but they don't seem to have done.
I have thought about collecting up aluminium cans to sell for scrap, but currently the price is only 85p per kilo which works out at about 0.5 p (0.6 c I think) per can, so it just isn't worth filling the place up with cans, I just put them in our household recycling instead.
1 person likes this
@DaddyEvil (151769)
• United States
23 Jun
@Fleura We gather them in trash bags and take them to the recycling center once every few years. Last time we got around $75 for them... That's a couple tanks of gas. And now there's a recycling center that buys them in our city. We don't have to drive 70 miles to cash them in anymore. 
1 person likes this
@BarBaraPrz (49928)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
23 Jun
That's nice of you, but don't water them right up at the base... the roots there won't absorb the water, it's the ones farther out from the canopy that slurp up the water.
1 person likes this
@BarBaraPrz (49928)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
23 Jun
@Fleura You're welcome, and the trees will thank you.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (192460)
• United States
24 Jun
You are to be commended for trying to water the trees. They will offer years of shade and good air. Kudos!
1 person likes this
@Orson_Kart (7454)
• United Kingdom
24 Jun
With my limited horticultural knowledge, I’d have thought that established trees would not need watering? Considering there is drought orders in place in parts of the country, the water is too precious to “waste’ on drying out trees. I know there is a big push to plant lots of new trees. Personally I think there are plenty in the woods and forests, and sometimes too many in streets where they can cause damage to paths and potentially peoples houses. That being said, a tree-lined avenue does look attractive.
1 person likes this
@Fleura (31848)
• United Kingdom
24 Jun
They're not established though, they were only planted this past winter/spring. And 'they' say that trees should be watered for the first two years after planting. I don't consider it a waste of water; if the trees do well they will provide pleasure (mental health benefits!) and shade, reduce pollution and cool the environment, for many years to come. And if it makes you feel better about wasting water, I make up for that by only having a wash (not a bath or shower) most days, only flushing the toilet after every couple of visits, wearing my clothes for a week or two before washing them, using water from rinsing vegetables and things like that to water plants, using rainwater (we have 12 water butts) to water my vegetables, mulching everywhere to reduce evaporation, and I certainly never water the grass and hardly ever wash the car and then only with buckets. So could I be allowed to 'waste' a bit on the trees?
