Post-Drought Care for Trees

As you have no doubt already heard, the Georgia Environmental Protection Division has recently called an official end to the drought that has plagued Georgians for almost two years. Recognizing that our trees and shrubs may need much more time to recover from the dry years, Trees Atlanta has released some advice for caring for post-drought care of your trees.

Stephen Johnston, Vice President and Division Manager of Bartlett Tree Experts, warns plant-owners who may be inclined to move tree care lower on their list of priorities that trees and shrubs may continue to feel the effects of the drought, despite the record levels of rainfall that our state is experiencing this season. According to Trees Atlanta, our trees may still be fragile and weak as a result of overexertion of their carbohydrate deposits during the drought.

Though you may not be able to see the effects of drought on your trees and shrubs immediately, these effects may manifest themselves over time. Most experts recommend that you have your trees and shrubs examined regularly by a certified arborist. In addition, make sure that your trees are getting proper care to encourage maximum growth, including irrigation that provides at least 1 inch of water per week, mulching that covers the ground around the tree in a 2 inch-thick layer, soil nutrient management as assessed by your County Extension Service, pruning to remove dead limbs that may harbor disease, and pest control.

For more information about maintaining and improving the health of your trees and shrubs, contact the Georgia Urban Forest Council, Georgia Arborist Association, or Trees Atlanta.

Trees Atlanta Mulching Project, May 9

www.treesatlanta.org

Trees Atlanta Hosts Arboretum Conference, May 2

Atlanta non-profit, Trees Atlanta, is hosting its first arboretum conference on Saturday, May 2, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.. The conference is sponsored by The UPS Foundation and will include presentations from landscaping experts, community advocates and interpretive specialists. The event will be held at Trees Atlanta Kendeda Center, 225 Chester Avenue, Atlanta, GA 30316.

The cost is $25 for members of Trees Atlanta and $35 for non-members. You can view and print the registration form at www.TreesAtlanta.org and then e-mail or fax (404-681-4909) your registration form and payment 

An arboretum is a living “tree museum” – a collection of trees and other mostly woody plants that are cultivated for educational and scientific purposes. Famous arboreta include the Arnold Arboretum in Boston and the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, England. In Atlanta, Trees Atlanta has begun work on what will become the longest linear arboretum in the world: The Atlanta Beltline Arboretum. This ambitious and exciting project builds on Trees Atlanta’s success in working with seven neighborhoods and their Neighborhood Arboretum Committees– Inman Park, Sylvan Hills, Oakhurst, Cabbagetown, Midtown, Reynoldstown, and Virginia Highlands – to establish their own arboreta.

Through the “City in the Arboretum” conference, we hope to teach interested citizens how they can establish an arboretum in their own neighborhood. Presenters will include Steve Sanchez of HGOR, Inc.; UGA plant biologist Wendy Zomlefer; Shannon Kettering of ECOS Environmental Design; Atlanta History Center’s John Manion; Rob Brawner of BeltLine Partnership; Kevin Bourke of BeltLine, Inc.; Chris Hastings of Arbormedics; Scott Smith Vice President of Westview Community Organization; and interpretive specialist Faye Goolrick. Whether you wish to become an active participant in the Neighborhood Arboreta, or just want to learn more about common and unusual trees, this will be an educational and exciting day.

Brown Middle School Teams Up With Trees Atlanta

Trees Atlanta announced today a pilot environmental education partnership with the Atlanta Audubon Society and Atlanta Public Schools’ Brown Middle School, a City of Atlanta school located in the West End Community of Atlanta adjacent to the future Atlanta BeltLine.  The partnership will focus on planting and caring for bird and wildlife-friendly trees and agro-forestry, the sustainable practice of growing food in a forest setting, within the setting of the Atlanta BeltLine Arboretum, a proposed “outdoor living tree museum” around the Atlanta BeltLine.  Additional partners include West End neighbors, West Atlanta Watershed Alliance, the Atlanta BeltLine Partnership, and others.  The project is supported by one of 41 national innovation grants provided by TogetherGreen, a group that funds and promotes conservation leadership training and volunteer programs designed to equip and engage diverse groups and individuals to take action today to shape a healthier tomorrow (www.togethergreen.org).

 Trees Atlanta and Atlanta Audubon staff and volunteers will kick-off the project with a student-only tree planting on Thursday, March 12^th from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.  Throughout the day, students will help install 1,000 trees and shrubs around the Brown Middle School Wildlife Triangle located at 765 Peeples Street, NW, Atlanta, GA 30310.  Before planting, the young people will receive interactive, hands-on training highlighting proper installation and benefits of native trees and plants, how to select and grow edible trees and shrubs, and creating a tangible community legacy.  Students will also tour the Atlanta BeltLine West End Trail and learn about the community and human health benefits of trees by studying the Atlanta BeltLine Arboretum’s unique collections adjacent to the school.

On the Saturday following the school project, March 14^th at 9:00 a.m., Trees Atlanta invites the community to get involved.  Interested citizens are invited to RSVP by calling 404-681-4901.  Volunteers will mulch and water the newly planted trees and plant any trees remaining from the students’ planting day.

Trees Atlanta hopes to replicate the program at other schools along the Atlanta BeltLine and throughout the City of Atlanta.  Astrove concluded, “I hope students bring their grandchildren back to the school someday and say, ‘Look, I planted that tree.'"

Dogwood Saplings @ Whole Foods on Ponce

The Whole Foods on Ponce de Leon Avenue in Midtown will give away free dogwood saplings on Friday, February 20, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. while supplies last to honor Arbor Day. The saplings are made available by Trees Atlanta.

"Trees in Art" Exhibition

Trees Atlanta announced the “Trees in Art” national exhibition today which will help raise funds for making Atlanta cleaner, greener and more beautiful through tree planting. All U.S. artists are invited to submit artwork with a theme of trees. Anne Irwin, owner of Anne Irwin Fine Art in Atlanta, GA, will jury and judge the show.

Trees Atlanta is a nationally recognized citizens group that protects and improves Atlanta’s urban environment by planting, conserving and educating. Since 1985, Trees Atlanta has planted and distributed more than 72,000 trees. Each year, 3,500 volunteers lend their expertise to Trees Atlanta.

Their first annual exhibition consists of two VIP preview evenings and a public art show in May 2009 at the Trees Atlanta Kendeda Center in Atlanta, GA. Eligible artwork includes paintings (any medium), drawings, photography and sculpture. Art submitted for the exhibition must be available for purchase. Artists will retain 75% of the proceeds and the remaining 25% will be donated to Trees Atlanta for planting and conserving trees. Digital art submissions are due by February 15 and the official exhibit will run May 9-27 at the Trees Atlanta Kendeda Center, 225 Chester Ave., Atlanta, GA 30316. Awards will be selected by Ms. Irwin from the actual artwork once hung. First, second and third place will receive ribbons and cash or merchandise awards from sponsors and three Honorable Mentions will receive ribbons.

In addition to the beauty that trees bring to urban areas, trees also support cleaner air and water; fewer incidents of asthma; lower energy costs; economic stability; wildlife and plant diversity; erosion prevention; stress reduction; and up to 20% higher property values. “Trees are essential for our communities, and it is a pleasure for Trees Atlanta to showcase trees through original artwork,” said Trees Atlanta’s Executive Director, Marcia Bansley. She continued, “The ‘Trees in Art’ Exhibition will help us raise much needed dollars for planting and caring for Atlanta’s trees and will help more people consider the important role trees play in our lives.”

More information about Trees Atlanta and the “Trees in Art” exhibition as well as a complete prospectus may be found at www.treesatlanta.org or by contacting Trees Atlanta Director of Membership and Special Events, Joe Staley, at 404-681-4890.

Trees Atlanta Holiday Campaign

Trees Atlanta is holding its 15th Annual Holiday Tree Greeting Campaign. Help clean Atlanta’s water and air—and complete your holiday shopping—by planting a tree!

Trees Atlanta will plant a shade tree in honor of your friends, family, and business associates—and send a festive card announcing your gift—for just $25. Through this year’s holiday campaign, the non-profit group will plant more than 2,000 oaks, maples, and flowering trees in barren public areas to provide beauty, shade, and clean air and water for the city.

To order Trees Atlanta Holiday Tree Greeting cards, send the names and addresses of those on your gift list with a check for $25 per holiday card to Trees Atlanta, 225 Chester Avenue, Atlanta, GA 30316 or order on-line at www.treesatlanta.org. Tree greetings may also be purchased at local REI and Patagonia stores through Dec. 31.

Help Atlanta Win Trees

Trees Atlanta wants you to help bring trees to Atlanta's streets. Eight cities across the U.S. are competing for the largest share of a $1 million-dollar tree-planting grant from American Express. The city with the greatest number of American Express Card transactions will get the most green. So look for the ROOT FOR ATLANTA tree icon displayed at participating businesses through October 31, then pay with any American Express Card and you could be seeing a lot more trees on your streets. For a complete list of local businesses helping the campaign, visit this link. 

Trees Atlanta Gets $1 Million Donation

What a fitting way to celebrate Earth Day and Ms. Trees Atlanta — Marcia Bansley — than with $1 million in sustainable shade trees. The surprise donation comes from Chris Hughes, Vice President of Select Sustainable Tree Trust in Athens.

“It was a surprise and I am Astouned, Delighted, Humbled and Very Grateful to Select Trees,” Bansley wrote us. “Select is one of the very best tree nurseries in the region so it is a very high honor that they are honoring me in this way...they are very up-to-date in all issues of tree growing and produce excellent quality trees.”

The admiration is mutual: “Trees Atlanta has had a very positive impact on Select Trees since our beginning in 1985,” Hughes said. “Even before we started to supply trees to Trees Atlanta in the late ‘80s, Marcia Bansley was educating us about the benefits of urban tough trees. With passion and determination, Marcia and her staff were the first to cause us to really focus on:

• The loss of tree canopy in Atlanta...;
• criteria that define Sustainable trees in the urban environment (long life expectancy and tolerance to stressful urban growing conditions;
• Specific challenges related to the proper installation and care of trees in the urban environment.”

The donated trees will be planted over the next three years ($340,000 per year in wholesale tree value) in three to five inch caliper trees.

The catch? The donation is contingent on matching donations to cover cost of proper installation and maintenance.

www.treesatlanta.org