VILLAGERS armed with wellies and spades have planted trees as part of a national festival.

National Tree Week is the UK's largest festival of trees and marks the start of the winter tree-planting season.

Local charity Trees For Dorset, which aims to plant, protect and promote the county's trees, carried out a planting at Winterborne Kingston which saw people of all ages get stuck in despite the soggy weather.

Families from Wool on the Wildside also got involved, while meat pasties and hot homemade soup helped to drive off the effects of the rain.

Overseen by Toby Branston, the volunteers planted a variety of native, non-imported trees including oak, hawthorn, field maple, rowan, cherry, spindle and hazel.

Rachel Palmer, chairman of Trees for Dorset, said: "We hope to launch our 'I’m backing a greener Britain' campaign in the New Year, supporting many different groups including parish councils and WI groups, to help them realise their dreams of planting trees to offset carbon emissions and counteracting climate change.

"We are concerned that such plantings will endure so we have a small team of experts on hand to advise and take the lead, if needed.

"We are launching, as a complement to the plantings, a charter which people will be available to sign up to online in due course. It sets out six issues that could also promote a greener Britain – one that will not only help redress climate change but help support our amazing wildlife here in Dorset, helping to fulfil our country’s 2020 biodiversity target."