1. The Tree Council's slogan is "Walk in the woods". Which is fair enough, but you don't have to be so limited. Young people can run, fool about, play games, organise treasure hunts, play cops(e) and robbers, have picnics, cycle and do lots of other challenging stuff. It's a good time of year for dawn choruses, which will give a very different perspective on the day. Noisy things, birds ... Britain is a deeply wooded area, and most of us don't have to go too far to come across a decent extent of forest-type area with public access - that includes youth groups.
2. Tree-related happenings and activities are not just for soppy nature lovers. Woods are a great place to practise survival skills. Few, after all, can resist the Ray Mears fantasy. Wield a knife and sharpen a stick.
Use an axe to make a spoon. Start fires with friction but no match. Cook and eat nettle soup. Build a shelter. Instil respect for tools while passing on knowledge about their use. All this is useful for accrediting achievement - at a high level. Staying in a shelter you've built yourself can qualify for the residential part of The Duke of Edinburgh's gold award.
3. Sometimes you can't see the wood for the trees. So ask young people to name a few of them. This doesn't mean giving them an appropriate moniker, like "that one's Kylie and this is Barry". It means recognising from the shape, the bark, the leaves, the general look of the thing, whether it is an oak, an ash, a willow, a birch or something else. If you don't know and don't think they will either, recruit a local person who does know.
Get someone who can talk about the trees, their character and history and some of the many myths that are attached to them.
4. Youth groups don't just have to enjoy woodland passively. They can also help create them - by planting trees. Some do it through schools or community groups or as part of a public event. If that doesn't suit, it can even happen virtually - you can plant a tree online. Visit www.treeforall.org.uk.
5. Look for opportunities to see demonstrations of historic woodland trades.
Bodgers and pole lathe-turners, basket-makers, longbow-makers and other obsolete but interesting trades regularly appear at craft fairs and special events. Not all furniture comes from Ikea flat packs.
6. Leave woodlands as you found them. Put out any fires that you start.
Don't chop down trees or pick wild flowers. Take your rubbish home - and the young people. Find out about and respect the countryside code. There is useful educational material explaining the code, including a one-minute animation created by Aardman, at www.countrysideaccess.gov.uk; www.treecouncil.org.uk.
