As winter settles into SE Portland, new trees are beginning to appear in planting strips, front yards and neighborhood green spaces, the result of this fall’s free tree programming partnership between Portland Parks & Recreation Urban Forestry (PP&R) and Friends of Trees, a local nonprofit organization.
While this pairing may seem unlikely, it was spurred by a recent $1.8 million investment designed to expand tree planting, volunteer training and community tree care in Portland neighborhoods. Further with this, every tree planted through the partnership will receive three years of follow-up care, including watering, monitoring and replacement when needed.
The goal of this partnership is to plant and care for 750 trees over the next two seasons in Portland’s most heat-vulnerable neighborhoods, many of which are located in the SE quadrant of the city. The collaboration is part of the City’s Equitable Tree Canopy program, funded by the Portland Clean Energy Community Benefits Fund (PCEF)…