Stoke residents are being offered a treemendous free gift to help make the county a greener place.

Staffordshire County Council will give away thousands of trees tomorrow (Thursday 23 February) for country park visitors to take home and plant.

Rowan, hazel, wild cherry and crab apple trees will be available and park rangers will provide advice on how and where to plant them for best results. The scheme is part of the county council's ongoing work to tackle climate change and reduce Staffordshire's carbon footprint.

Council leader Alan White told fellow cabinet members about the scheme at their meeting last week.

He said: "To encourage more tree planting in gardens across Staffordshire, we will be giving away 5,000 trees to residents.

"The trees will be available to pick up from Chasewater, Apedale, Deep Hayes and Greenway Bank country parks on Thursday between 11am and 3pm. Trees will be given on a first come, first served basis and one tree per household will be allocated.

"Any left over trees will be donated to schools. It's an absolutely wonderful initiative and I hope to see more trees growing in Staffordshire."

Simon Tagg, cabinet member for environment, infrastructure and climate change (Simon Tagg).

Simon Tagg, the county council's cabinet member for environment, infrastructure and climate change, said: "This is a fantastic project that will help get more trees planted in people's gardens and help make Staffordshire sustainable.

"Small actions when combined can have a big impact – we know that there are huge environmental benefits from having more trees. And we know, in planting more trees, we'll help create greener communities here in Staffordshire and help us all breathe cleaner air."

READ MORE: What's on in Stoke this weekend - Lantern Parade, 80s Night and Ceramic Makers Market

Free from clickbait, pop-up ads and unwanted surveys, Stoke Nub News is a quality online newspaper for our city.

Please consider following Stoke Nub News on Facebook or Twitter.