The Prince of Wales got his hands dirty planting a tree and joked that "a pint of cider a day keeps the doctor away," as he heard about efforts to tackle flooding in rural South Wales.
The future king planted a Welsh Oak and heard told how local farmers had reinstated a historic cider orchard as part of a project to plant one million native trees across the region.
Farmers Jim and Kate Beavan told him how they had replanted apple trees on a north-facing slope which meant they flowered later and missed the last frost, producing better fruit. Kate is a woodland creation officer for the charity Stump Up for Trees, which has planted 500,000 trees in the area over the past five years.
Cider fan William clearly approved of their efforts, but insisted he would only ever stick to one pint of their homemade Great Tre Rhew cider because "it's eight per cent!"
The heir to the throne was at Great Tre Rhew Farm, near White Castle, Monmouthshire, to see how the charity is planting shelter belts on hillsides - strips of forestry to provide shelter for livestock and improve soil infiltration, helping to keep water in the ground to prevent flooding, but also to serve as a firebreak.
Last year Storm Claudia caused the nearby River Monnow to burst its banks, causing significant damage to the local area. Over the summer wildfires devastated hillsides around nearby Blaenavon, making the charity's work more relevant than ever.
© Getty ImagesWilliam planted his own tree in the strip of land, joking as he approached a pre-dug hole, "Here's one I made earlier". Lowering the sapling into the ground, he got his hands dirty, scattering soil around the base. "Hopefully that will be nice and tall. It's in a good spot, it's got lots of space," he said.
William was told it would be in good company, growing near a Rowan tree planted by former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams. The young oak was one grown from seed by Stump Up For Trees, which has a nursery of 135,000 homegrown saplings ready for future use.
© Getty ImagesEarlier, William helped collect seeds from a Field Maple, reaching into the branches to harvest them to be added to the nursery. "There's nothing more calming and therapeutic," he said as he helped volunteers to pick them off. "I'm a bit taller than the rest of you so I should be reaching up here for some of these higher ones."
He was told volunteers are aiming to collect 60,000 seeds this Autumn, compared to 35,000 last year.
© Getty ImagesSpeaking afterwards, Dr Jenny Knight, director of Stump Up For Trees said of the prince: "He's obviously so interested and invested in what's going on and what's happening. It's great that he is looking at not just the problems but the solutions as well. And it was lovely for him to just come and join in with the volunteers and be really down to earth and normal about what we're doing."
Joe Haseley, Farming and Nature Programme Manager for the Duchy of Cornwall, joined William for the visit to find out more about the charity’s work and how it can inspire land regeneration on the estate.
© Getty Images“That knowledge exchange is so valuable,” said Jenny. “We’'ve got to work together across catchments if we're going to have an impact on fire and flooding. If we're not taking an integrated approach, we're not going to make any change. Yeah, and I didn't say that to the prince. He was he was saying that to me. So it's great that at that level, like he can see those different things and is trying to support people. Yeah, like a tiny organization like ours.
Stump up for Trees was founded by Keith Powell, a sixth generation farmer in the Black Mountains, who decided to plant 135,000 native trees on 64 acres of common land. He managed to convince other local farmers to get involved and the charity now has 500 volunteers.
