The Phantom Planter

 Just got news I've been nominated for this BBC award!! Onwards and upwards for the Phantom Planters movement.  Hope theres many trees phantom planted from this.

 Me and wee betty were working away yesterday watering and mulching lots of the trees at the Lisnabreeny Community Orchard. The place is all looking amazing. What a valuable asset this will be for the community and nature in the years ahead.  600 apple trees could easily produce a million apples a year when they are all fully matured in about 10 years time. Thats a lot of apples for jams, juices, ciders or what ever else the community want to be doing with them.  The land will be put into a Trust so that in the years ahead when we are all gone it will always be kept for the community and nature.  I need all the help I can get financially guys to get the Trust setup, its not cheap all these things and not cheap either maintaining the orchard and oak spiral. Please do support on the link below.   https://paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=FAJZHB3TBXMSL The other day I seen a man out cutting the grass around a tree at our other main orchard The Phantom Plante...

 Love these 2 apple trees in flower right in the middle of an industrialised area of East Belfast.  I phantom planted these a few years ago and cant believe how well they are doing. I remember when I was planting these there was so many people tooting their horns with one girl stopping to ask could she get her pic taken with me.  Another person shouted out the car window "Up the Phantom Planters"!... UTPP!!!  So many phantom planted trees everywhere I go these days, they just keep on growing and getting better looking as the years go on. So soul enriching watching your environmental graffiti thrive like this.  Its also amazing what I'm actually learning just by sticking trees in the ground the right way up and observing them over the years.  I've gotten to know so much just by doing. I never was one for learning from books or videos. I have always learned by jumping in at the deep end and work it out from there with enthusiasm and optimism.  I have so ...

 This is Jimmy the apple tree. My first ever phantom planted tree right outside my family home where I was born and raised.  I can't believe how well Jimmy is doing. I never thought he was going to make it.  Around 11 years ago I planted Jimmy in waterlogged ground. I had never planted a tree in my life before. I just dug a hole and made sure it was the right way up.  We planted 2 that day. My dads mate planted the other.  I remember when we planted them and I named mine, I said to my dads mate are you naming yours?  He looked at me like I had 2 heads.  His didn't make it sadly and Jimmy struggled on for years.  After my dad passed away and I moved out of the estate I never went back down to see Jimmy much. Difficult seeing other people living in your family home. Went down once a few years ago and couldn't believe Jimmy was growing away. 7 years I'm gone from the street now and have only been down a few times since then.  Yesterday I went do...

https://youtu.be/TU11lYq8Y9Y?si=q6BFwQrx3UUHsAZD  

 Its an amazing time of year watching all your phantom planted trees come into flower. Spent most of the day yesterday walking my Big Pal round and tending to many of my trees. We must have seen well over 2000 phantom planted fruit trees, ranging from ones just planted a few months ago to ones that are near 10 years old.  Wee Betty's legs were wrecked by the end and I had to carry her for the last bit.  Cant believe the amount of ladybirds that are at our main orchard - The Phantom Planters HQ! Many years ago I collected loads of ladybirds from other areas and spread them all around the trees at the orchard. Maybe this is them breeding and making The Phantom Planters HQ their permanent home as I dont think I've seen so many ladybirds in the one place from I was a child.  Going to start making more videos and putting them up on Youtube. As most of you know I've been giving it a lot of thought about how I go forward with social media. I still want to create good conten...