Trees, Tech and Transformation: Work Starts on Pasley Pocket Park in Stoke
Volunteers will join Plymouth Tree People and Plymouth and South Devon Community Forest to plant the first trees in a bold, climate-conscious community park led by Stoke in Bloom.
Planting starts 27 February at Pasley Pocket Park - marking 125 years of Pasley Street (1901–2026) and creating a lasting floral and green legacy for the neighbourhood. Organisers say this is no ordinary green space.
It has been designed to reactivate an unloved corner of Stoke, bringing flowers, pollinators and people together. Pasley Pocket Park will offer somewhere to relax, connect with neighbours and spend time outdoors.
The design was led by public feedback, and biodiversity needs, which includes more than 400 plants. Benches, informative signage and technology that specifically monitors air quality and soil health also form part of the innovative plan. Thanks to a partnership with the University of Plymouth, the project blends traditional horticulture with cutting‑edge tools that track air quality and soil health.
“It’s time to turn the volume up on greening Plymouth. Not quietly. Properly. More flowers. More bees. More colour. More life. People here deserve the very best horticulture can offer, not scraps, not afterthoughts, but bold, beautiful, thriving green spaces that make you stop and feel proud of where you live. This doesn’t happen by accident. It happens because residents decide it matters. We are accountable for whether our community flourishes or fades. If we want Stoke to thrive, we have to plant it, protect it and push for it. Be the change you want to see — and let’s make it impossible to ignore.”
Kenny Raybould-Wilding, Director at Stoke in Bloom and award-winning horticulturalist and urban gardener, said: