Lemon Tree Trust Launches Seed Appeal with Mr Fothergill’s to Send 100,000 Packets to Refugee and IDP Camps in Kurdistan Region of Iraq
April 30th, 2020 | News | Comments Off on Lemon Tree Trust Launches Seed Appeal with Mr Fothergill’s to Send 100,000 Packets to Refugee and IDP Camps in Kurdistan Region of Iraq
Mr Fothergill’s and the Lemon Tree Trust (LTT) are working together to provide 100,000 packets of seed to people living in refugee and IDP camps in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI). To achieve this, we are supporting LTT’s ‘Gardener to Gardener’ Seed Appeal with a week-long promotion to our UK customers. For every packet of seed we sell online in the first week of May, a packet will be donated to the LTT’s seed appeal.
Further packets will be purchased using donations collected in 2020 by Lemon Tree Trust in the UK and USA.
Lemon Tree Trust Founder and CEO, Stephanie Hunt, based in Dallas, Texas, USA, says:
“We are all seeking refuge and solace in our gardens as Covid-19 completely disrupts our lives. The need for personal green space and home gardens has never been greater in the camps where we support people to grow food and flowers. Limited space and resources make people creative and this is certainly true of the incredible gardeners we know in Kurdistan. We are thrilled to have the support of Mr Fothergill’s and have been humbled by the number of personal seed donations we have already received this month.”
Demand for seed and plants in camps in the KRI has significantly increased since all camps were closed to help combat the outbreak of Covid-19 in the region. Thousands of people have lost their jobs as a result of the outbreak and food shortages have been experienced in most camps. In the last two weeks alone, LTT has distributed over 3,000 plants and seeds to over 1,000 families in Domiz 1 camp with further seed distributions of previously donated seed from Mr Fothergill’s planned in a further seven camps over the next two weeks.
Tim Jeffries from Mr Fothergill’s says:
“We’re all thankful for our gardens at the moment and here at Mr Fothergill’s we have consistently seen at least 100% more demand than usual for seed. Thanks to our partnership with Lemon Tree Trust we can support people in refugee and IDP camps to create home gardens for purpose and pleasure, helping in our own way to overcome the global challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic.”
It has not been possible for Lemon Tree Trust to run its popular garden competitions this year due to Covid-19 restrictions in place across the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. However, home gardens are being celebrated with a ‘virtual garden exhibition’ as residents are encouraged to share photographs of their gardens in exchange for seeds and lemon trees. Winners are being announced every week and as many gardens as possible are being shared via online galleries.
LTT is calling on gardeners everywhere to support people living in refugee and IDP camps who are desperate to plant food and flowers at their home shelters. In addition to our online promotion matching seed packets sold inthe first week of May to donate to the Lemon Tree Trust, they are also asking for any spare seed to be sent directly to the charity for distribution later in the year. Please email info@lemontreetrust.org for a UK or USA postal address or donate directly to the appeal online at lemontreetrust.org/donate.