A PAIR of Kanzan Cherry trees planted in Frome's Victoria Park to replace trees destroyed by vandals are thriving.

Residents Nick East and Rob Hearn recently visited to check on the trees planted on the north side of the park which replaced the original young trees.

They decided to combat the negativity with positive community action and launched a JustGiving page to plant new trees, which hit its target within hours of posting.

The Crowdfunder in June 2025 took just four hours to raise £420 to replace the trees which had been planted by the town council’s ranger team with pupils from Selwood Academy in Autumn 2024.

Suppliers Barcham Trees offered a discount on the replacement saplings, which were planted in the autumn and are now thriving. The money also went towards the cost of a replacement handkerchief tree near the bandstand.

Cllr Mark Dorrington said: “It’s fantastic to see the cherry trees healthy and blossoming, thanks to the quick action and kindness of Nick, Rob and everyone who donated to the fundraiser.

“Hopefully we’ll see these trees blossom many more times in the years to come.”

Nick East said: “We saw the trees had been cut down and they were such a beautiful addition, so we thought we’d pitch in and ask the community if they could help us crowdfund to replace them.

“The response was amazing; it only took a few hours to get the money together. It’s great to see them back and thriving.”

Rob Hearn added: “Initially there was a Facebook post about the tree and people were giving some context about them, that they’d been planted by students from Selwood Academy and one had a memorial plaque.

“Nick asked me to help with writing the JustGiving page and it just felt like the right thing to do.”