PEOPLE who missed out on ordering a discounted free tree will get another chance over the coming weeks.

Around 350 trees were snapped up by green-thinking residents as part of the inaugural Petersfield Tree Festival.

The November event at Petersfield Community Garden was a great success and gave visitors the opportunity to celebrate the benefits of trees and learn more about them.

It sprouted out of PeCAN’s Fruit Tree in Every Garden project and was run in partnership with the community garden, Tree Council and EHDC.

Local tree wardens and representatives of Petersfield Society Green Infrastructure Group were on hand to offer advice, including how to care for trees as they age.

PeCAN offered potted fruit trees for sale on the day and tree identification activities for children, and Petersfield Area Lichen Enthusiasts (PALE) conducted lichen trails, introducing visitors to a precious microscopic world we all take for granted.

Organisers are keen to make the festival an annual event with the offer of subsidised apple, cherry, plum and pear trees at the heart of the scheme.

People who missed the chance to buy a £12 tree will be able to place an order this January with collections in February.

The Tree Council’s head of major tree planting projects (national region) Phil Paulo said the event was to “inspire more people to plant more trees and offer support to help those trees survive”.

Ian Turner, head of major tree planting projects (southern region) at The Tree Council, told Shine the festival is about “putting people and places and nature together.”

People who buy trees are “investing in nature, in themselves and in their gardens with a legacy of 30 to 40 years of the trees producing fruit for them.”

Keep an eye on PeCAN’s @petersfield_can Instagram feed or visit www.petersfieldcan.org for more details on how to order or register an interest in a fruit tree.