I am passionate about our natural environment and keen to share my knowledge with the next generation in a fun, imaginative way.

My leaf baby dolls have an accompanying fact card to encourage children and their families to get outside and connect with the trees that surround them.

My hope is that children will come to know,and then love, their local trees, woods and wild places through the magical world of play. As adults they will then be keen to protect them and pass this love to the next generation.

I know that trees hold a special place in many people’s hearts. The big cathedrals mimic the power and majesty of trees in the forests, and oak trees have been used for meeting places – spiritual and community events.

As I’ve dug deeper into each species I have discovered the ogham tree zodiac.

This isn’t a really old, ancient thing but rather a bringing together of learnings from studying folklore, mythology and religion, and connecting them to the wheel of the year. From my research most authoritative information points to the poet, Robert Graves, and the inclusion of the Celtic “tree alphabet” zodiac in his 1948 book, The White Goddess. I’ve ordered a copy of this to read.

The “wheel of the year” is something many people are familiar with even if they don’t realise that it is referred to as this. It’s 8 points in the year that we think our ancestors would have seen as spiritually significant, and still are thought to be by many people. It’s the most central ring on the diagram.

The points are marked by the sun- the summer and winter solstices, the spring and autumn equinoxes, and the mid points between these (Halloween and Mayday are two of these! What’s fascinating to me is how Christian religious festivals are layered over these points. It makes me think that early Christians in the UK considered both of these as important as each other, melded them together and adapted to suit their needs.

The tree zodiac fits around the wheel of the year but by following the 13 moons. For each 4 week period a different rune and tree is assigned – with meaning placed on each on. It’s the second ring from the centre on the illustration.

Depending on your mindset you will either love to discover what tree you are – and be interested to hear what characteristics can be assigned to it – or you’ll think it’s nonsense! Either way it makes a meaningful gift for a child and encourages them to connect with ‘their tree’.

If you would like to learn more about the characteristics for each tree check out this website —> https://onetreeplanted.org/pages/what-kind-of-tree-are-you

I am a Willow which I find fascinating as one of my early memories is playing in a willow tree with my cousin in Darley Park in Derby. The tree was so magical reaching all the way down to the ground like a green curtain. I also have a deep love of baskets!

This year I plan to fill in the gaps in my leaf baby collection so I will be able to offer a full set – I’m missing alder, reed and vine/bramble.

I could then offer the collection as a subscription set on Patreon – sent each lunar month to you for you to enjoy. Is this something you’d be interested in? Let me know in the comments!

If you want to discover my range of made to order leaf baby dolls pop over to my website —->