Welcome to Attleboro’s Pocket Forest

On May 1 and 2, 2026, more than 150 people helped plant 550 native tree and shrub saplings, representing about 50 species, in a 2,000-square-foot plot. Planted close together using the Miyawaki method, this diverse community is intended to develop into a small, dense native forest.

The forest grows both above and below ground. Roots interact with fungi, bacteria, and other soil organisms. Many plants form partnerships with mycorrhizal fungi, exchanging sugars for nutrients the fungi gather. These relationships are part of the living soil that students can investigate as the forest develops.

Attleboro’s pocket forest is an outdoor classroom for studying how living landscapes hold water. Students are exploring how water soaks into different soils and how vegetation influences surface temperatures. These observations can help us understand how forests might reduce stormwater runoff and the pollutants it carries into rivers and, eventually, the sea.

Visit the forest

The pocket forest is on an old ballfield between Attleboro High School and Capron Park Zoo. Parking is available by the zoo, behind the Newell Structure, at 231 County Street, Attleboro.

An ecological observatory

Attleboro High School Marine Science students study the connections among land, rivers, and the ocean. Their interest in reducing runoff and protecting marine life, including North Atlantic right whales, has inspired Capron Park Zoo to plan a life-size right whale statue beside the pocket forest.

Environmental Science students are using a drone to observe heat patterns and steel rings to measure how quickly water enters the soil. Their study compares the pocket forest with nearby grass, an oak forest, compacted ground, and forest with ground cover. They are also comparing conditions with the parking lot.

You can take part, too. Walk around the forest, meet its trees and shrubs, and share what you notice at any of its four fences.

What will you discover? Your observations can help students follow how this little forest changes through the seasons and grows over the years.