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The Robin Gut Foundation on site

Roncalli School plants 550 trees

90 hard-working hands, 550 new trees for Beckum, 2,200 euros for the school's support association: With these impressive figures, the Roncalli School project, which is also the state-wide kick-off for the "NRW plants" campaign, has now reached its crowning conclusion.

20 March 2026 by Sandra Berges
  • After a brief theoretical session on the topic of ‘How do I plant a tree?’, the pupils, accompanied by their headteacher, set to work with great enthusiasm.

The 45 pupils listen attentively as district forester Martin Kuchling explains what they need to bear in mind when planting a tree: the roots must be placed fully and very carefully into the ground. If the pre-dug hole is not deep enough, they need to use a spade to make it deeper. Then fill in the hole and gently tamp the soil around the tree. The tree is firmly rooted in the ground when it no longer moves when lifted gently.

Dieter Könnes explains the initiative to the children
The TV presenter and founder of the ROBIN GUT Foundation is delighted with the children’s fantastic support.

After the theory session, the Year 3 and Year 4 pupils, kitted out with gloves, spades and saplings, and full of enthusiasm – alongside TV presenter and founder of the ROBIN GUT Foundation, Dieter Könnes; Mayor Michael Gerdhenrich; Regional Forestry Office Director Adalbert Koch; donor Franz Fuest; and their headteacher, Camilla Stoelzel.

Planting trees instead of teaching – how did this come about?

Together with the ROBIN GUT Foundation and the town of Beckum, the pupils had written handwritten letters to 100 businesses in Beckum asking for support for their nature and climate protection project. The result was an impressive total of 550 new trees for Beckum. It was then time for the pupils to swap their pens for spades and plant the donated trees.

Mayor and schoolchildren plant a tree
Mayor Michael Gerdhenrich and a school pupil are really pitching in.

In the woodland area south of Ahlener Straße – which had previously been weakened and thinned out by sooty bark disease affecting the sycamore and ash dieback – they worked together to plant native deciduous tree species such as English oaks, European beeches, small-leaved lime trees and European elms. “By specifically introducing additional tree species, the aim is to make the forest as a whole better adapted to the adverse effects of climate change, such as drought and heat stress,” explained district forester Martin Kuchling. This is based on the principle that mixed forests are significantly more resilient than, for example, monocultures.

Mayor Michael Gerdhenrich was delighted by the pupils’ commitment and the generosity of Beckum’s business community: “The forest in Beckum is the town’s green lung, a valuable natural space and, at the same time, an important venue for local recreation and leisure. Every newly planted tree therefore not only helps to combat climate change but also directly benefits the people of Beckum. I hope that the ROBIN GUT Foundation will see the success of this community initiative repeated in as many towns across North Rhine-Westphalia as possible.”

Dieter Könnes of the ROBIN GUT Foundation explains the special school initiative in North Rhine-Westphalia: “Beckum is the pilot municipality for North Rhine-Westphalia, and so this marks the start of the campaign to plant, as we hope, 1 million new trees across the whole of North Rhine-Westphalia.”

The campaign continues

The foundation estimates a cost of 20 euros per tree. For the school project, 20 per cent goes to the Friends of the School Association. Donations can also still be made independently of the school via:

www.nrw-pflanzt.de

Further news on this topic:

Pilot municipality for NRW plants