Winter might evoke thoughts of hibernation and stagnant growth, but TreeBaltimore is planning a gathering of Baltimore’s tree stewards and volunteers to celebrate the city’s tree canopy with food, trivia, a raffle, and more on Feb. 27.
Baltimore is one of the few urban areas in Maryland that is seeing gains in its tree canopy, and TreeBaltimore sees that as cause for celebration. Twice a year, the city’s tree advocates, planters, maintainers, researchers, volunteers, and cheerleaders convene to network and learn about caring for urban trees.
Separately, the state of Maryland has made a commitment to plant 5 million trees on the state’s public and private lands by 2031. Three years into the program, which began in 2021, 20% of the trees are planted, and the milestone millionth tree was planted in January. This is all part of the Maryland Tree Solutions Now Act of 2021, which established the 5 Million Trees Initiative. A major part of the effort is to plant trees in underserved areas.
The TreeBaltimore event will also include updates on the TreeBaltimore program, volunteers will receive their TreeKeepers and Weed Warrior certifications, and there will be a presentation from Johns Hopkins and the Baltimore Social-Environmental Collaborative (BSEC) researchers on how their mobile observatory is measuring trees using advanced sensors.
Since 2007, TreeBaltimore has supported local partners in planting thousands of trees within the city, contributing to Baltimore’s growing canopy. TreeBaltimore is a mayoral initiative led by the Baltimore City Department of Recreation and Parks that aims to increase the city’s tree canopy to 40%.
The event takes place on Thursday, Feb. 27, from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Unity Hall, which is located at 1505 Eutaw Place, Baltimore, MD.
The event is free and open to the public, but registration is required. To register, click this link.
