Growing a Greener Alameda, One Tree at a Time

Community tree planting on Saturday, November 14

October through March is prime tree-planting season. Cooler temperatures and seasonal rainfall help young trees establish roots before summer heat arrives. Trees capture carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, protecting the climate. They provide shade to cool our neighborhoods, help manage storm runoff, and improve air quality.

Native trees are especially good at providing wildlife with critical habitat. So, let’s all plant trees this fall and winter and green Alameda!

The public is invited to a community tree planting on Saturday, November 14, from 9 a.m. to noon at Mainstreet Linear Park, along Main Street, bordering Alameda Point. 100K Trees for Humanity, which obtained the grant to pay for the trees, the Rotary Club of Alameda, and Alameda Recreation and Parks Department (ARPD) teamed up to organize and run the event. This is a big planting of 60 trees, so we need the community to turn out and get these trees in the ground.

Wear closed-toe shoes and bring gloves and a filled reusable water bottle. All other equipment will be provided by ARPD. Families are welcome. Training will be provided. Let’s all turn out for a fun morning of tree planting.

You can also plant trees in your yard. Fruit trees thrive in Alameda and provide you with fresh fruit you can enjoy and share. We really enjoy our figs and persimmons and trade some of them for our neighbor’s avocados and lemons. Excess fruit can be donated to the food bank, by reaching out to Alameda Backyard Growers, who will glean your fruit trees. Native trees will attract native insects and birds to watch.

What is involved with planting a tree properly? First, keep in mind its ultimate size when selecting a tree for a space in your yard. Purchase your tree from a local nursery to support local businesses. Once you’ve got your tree, carefully lean it on its side and press your foot on the plastic container a few times to loosen it. Then slide the tree out of the container. Loosen the roots all around the root ball from the bottom to two-thirds the way up.

Dig a hole roughly twice as wide as the size of the container, place fertilizer tablets in the bottom of the hole, then carefully place the tree in the hole. Ensure the base of the trunk is about an inch above ground level to keep the trunk dry and prevent rot. Fill in with dirt and compost.

Make a circular doughnut-shaped mound of mulch around the tree, ensuring no mulch is touching the trunk. Then drive two stakes next to the tree and tie it off with rubber ties, not too tight; there should be some give in the rubber ties. Then water the tree for the first few summers. Remember to take the stakes out after a few years, once the tree is established.

Let’s all turn out for the community tree planting on November 14 and plant trees in our yards this fall and winter! Together we can make Alameda even more beautiful while protecting the climate.

Joyce Mercado is the author of Save the Planet in Your Spare Time: A Climate Protection Handbook for the Busy Person, a member of Community Action for a Sustainable Alameda (CASA), and a past president of the Rotary Club of Alameda. Her columns are collected at alamedapost.com/Joyce-Mercado. She can be reached at jlmercado246@gmail.com.

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