Spring 2026: Tree & Plant Appeal
Help families displaced by war grow gardens that bring shade, beauty and sanctuary at their home shelters
Spring is a season of beginnings. Of soil under fingernails. Of tender green shoots pushing through dry ground.
Spring is a season of growth.
If you are lucky enough to have a garden, you know how much it gives back. This spring, you can help someone who has been forcibly displaced from their home, a survivor of war, create that same sense of sanctuary outside their own front door at their home shelter.
These trees and plants will bring shade, food, life and hope to families in refugee and internally displaced people camps, giving them a living sanctuary of their own. They also create spaces where neighbours gather, friendships form and a sense of belonging and connection begins to strengthen.
Our fundraising target for this appeal is £30,000 GBP / $39,500 USD, which will help us grow thousands more trees and shrubs which we will plant across multiple camps.
Every donation this spring will be matched, helping twice as many trees and gardens grow.
Ghazal’s Garden
Filmed by Ronak Qewas, a journalist from Kobani, Syria, who was forcibly displaced by war
in 2015. She studied at Salahaddin University’s College of Arts and lives in Gawilan.
“I call my garden ‘the spirit of life’ because it feels like a soul.”
Ghazal fled the war in Syria in 2019, leaving Qamishlo behind. When she arrived at Gawilan camp, the ground outside her shelter was bare. She began with what she knew from home: pomegranate, mulberry and olive trees planted for their fruit, and flowers because she wanted colour and scent. Honeysuckle, because it reminded her of Syria, of home.
We provided the seeds and the trees. Ghazal decided what to plant, how to tend the garden space and what it would become.
Ghazal and her neighbours now swap cuttings and tell each other about seedlings. It has become a friendly competition to see who has the most beautiful garden. A small plot of land can transform a bare space from that of a desert. Gardens cool the air, feed families and lift the spirit. They green the neighbourhood around them.
Every donation this spring will be matched, helping twice as many trees and gardens grow.
Match funding
All donations to the Spring Appeal are being kindly matched by one of our supporters. This means your gift will be doubled. For example, if you donate £20 GBP / $27 USD, it will be matched with another £20 GBP / $26 USD, making £40 / $52 in total to help plant trees and gardens that bring food, shade and hope to families in the camps. You do not need to do anything. After the appeal ends, we will total all donations and the donor will match them, up to £30,000 GBP / $39,500 USD. Note: If the total donations go over the appeal target, matching will depend on the donor’s available funds.
What we are doing now
Our gardening teams are already nurturing thousands of vegetables, flowers and trees, bringing life to shelters and the surrounding spaces.
Since January, hundreds of tree saplings – citrus, pomegranate, cypress and ornamental – have been planted and are being grown on alongside flowers, herbs and vegetables, ready to be distributed to families in need. Across nine camps, our garden facilitators distribute trees and plants, along with knowledge and practical skills, helping residents to grow and sustain their own gardens and neighbourhoods.
Since 2016, we have planted or distributed over 300,000 trees and plants,
helping turn dry, dusty ground into greener places to live.
But demand is growing and we need your help
More families want trees, plants and the means to grow food and create shade than we can currently support.
Your donation this spring will help us grow and distribute the next wave of trees and plants, creating home gardens that provide shade, food and sanctuary, and planting trees, shrubs and ground vegetation along streets and neighbourhood spaces.
These gardens and plantings establish tree canopies, ground vegetation and green corridors, connecting homes and communal areas across the camps. They also create meeting points, where people swap cuttings and seeds, share gardening tips and begin to rebuild community after loss and displacement.
Imagine the result: a more liveable, verdant landscape of shaded pathways, lush pockets of greenery and spaces where families and neighbours can pause, breathe and feel a sense of home, while also growing fresh fruit and vegetables for their families.
Every donation this spring will be matched, doubling the impact of your support.
How your donation helps
Your gift this spring will help us:
- Grow and distribute many more trees, plants and seeds
- Support home gardens at shelter level
- Green camps and neighbouring host communities
100% of your donation goes directly towards gardening activities in refugee and internally displaced people camps, helping to nurture hope, healing and growth in these resilient communities.
If we reach our tree target, your donation will be used where it is needed most across our growing work.
What your gift could grow
| 🍅 £20 GBP / $26 USD could provide vegetable seeds like tomato, aubergine and pepper, plus compost, for a household garden. A family can grow fresh food outside their shelter and begin tending a space of their own. |
| 🌹£40 GBP / $52 USD could help us grow rose bushes for home gardens, bringing colour, scent, pollinators, and a reminder of home. Petals can also be used in traditional Syrian and Iraqi cooking, reconnecting families with familiar tastes and memories. |
| 🍋 £75 GBP / $99 USD could nurture young fruit trees, such as a lemon or pomegranate, from seed to planting. The trees will provide shade and fruit in the years ahead, growing alongside the family who cares for it. |
| 🌳 £250 GBP / $330 USD could grow and distribute 10 young trees across camps. These trees help to create green spaces for communities by providing future shade, cleaner air and habitat for birds and insects. |
| 🌱 £1,000 GBP / $1,320 USD could fund a full planting cycle in the Hêvî or Azadî community garden polytunnels, from seed sowing to seedlings being shared with families in the camps. |
| 👩🏽 £2,000 GBP / $2,640 USD could pay for a garden facilitator for one year, enabling families to receive plants, training and ongoing guidance for their gardens and providing employment for a displaced resident. |
| 🌳🌳🌳 £5,000 GBP / $6,600 USD could help green whole sections of a camp and nearby host communities, transforming bare ground into thriving gardens of trees, plants and life. |
Every donation this spring will be matched, helping twice as many trees and gardens grow.
Fundraising target: £30,000 GBP / $39,500 USD. Together we can grow thousands of trees and plants across multiple camps.
Our work and the UN Sustainable Development Goals
Our projects contribute directly to several of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, including:
SDG 2: Zero Hunger, by helping families grow food and improve local food security.
SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing, by supporting mental health and community resilience through gardening.
SDG 5: Gender Equality, by empowering women and supporting their leadership in community gardens.
SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities, by creating greener, safer living spaces in refugee and IDP camps.
SDG 15: Life on Land, by increasing biodiversity and restoring land through trees and plants.
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Why green spaces matter
There are over 1.34 million displaced people living in Iraq. Many have fled conflict and violence and are unable to return home. More than 300,000 of them are Syrian refugees, and many live in camps across the Kurdistan region 2.
These camps are often created quickly and can evolve into dense, city-like settlements where green space is scarce. In these accidental cities, gardens are not a luxury, they are a lifeline.
Trees and plants help cool the air, reduce pollution, protect soil and restore landscapes. Shrubs, flowers and vegetables soften harsh edges, provide food, attract birds and pollinators, and create spaces where people can pause and breathe after the trauma of war and displacement.
Gardens offer a reminder of home, a sense of sanctuary, and the dignity of making choices about their own space, helping families reclaim agency in challenging circumstances. They support mental and physical health and strengthen social ties within the camps.
Every donation this spring will be matched, helping twice as many trees and gardens grow.
Domiz 1 camp at
a glance
- Home to around 29,000 people within just 1.2 km²
- One of the largest refugee camps in the Kurdistan region
- Densely built “accidental city” with very little green space
- Families live in close quarters, often with limited privacy & shade
Why trees and plants
matter here
- Shade and fruit from trees help families stay cool and nourished
- Plants bring life, beauty and pollinators to the camp
- Home gardens offer dignity, control and hope in a challenging environment
Urban gardening
in action
In 2024, the UNHCR (the UN refugee agency) highlighted Lemon Tree Trust as an exemplary model of urban farming and community gardening in Domiz 1 camp.
With many camps lasting 20 years or more, international guidance suggests 15-20% of settlements should be green space, with everyone living within 300 metres of nature.
Growing with dignity
We grow trees and plants; residents decide how to use them.
Our teams are experienced growers, teachers and arboriculturists who have been displaced by war and conflict and live in the camps themselves. They provide training and guidance, passing on skills so residents can grow in ways that suit their family’s needs and available space. In each camp where we work, one or two garden facilitators support residents to grow and care for their gardens, encouraging shared learning. Through Lemon Tree Trust initiatives such as our Garden of the Month award and Annual Garden Competitions, we recognise and celebrate the pride and efforts people take in improving their surroundings.
This work empowers residents to make their own choices about their gardens and neighbourhood green spaces.
Every donation this spring will be matched, helping twice as many trees and gardens grow.
“I couldn’t believe my ears when I heard I could have a garden here… We’ve all been displaced and are suddenly living in a desert without trees… I see life in this garden. It cleans the air and gives people hope.”
– Ahmed Tamo, Domiz 1 camp, Kurdistan Region of Iraq
Grow hope in your inbox
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We have launched our Spring 2026: Tree & Plant Appeal, inviting supporters to help families displaced by war grow gardens that bring food, shade, sanctuary and beauty to the places they now call home. There are over 1.34 million displaced people living in Iraq, more than 300,000 of them Syrian refugees. Many live in camps … Continued
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