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Morris Tree Board highlights grants, elm and ash threats in annual report to council
Summary
The Morris Tree Board reported two new grants totaling about $133,000 for pruning and planting, described ongoing Dutch elm disease and emerging emerald ash borer threats, and outlined planting and stewardship work for 2025.
The Morris Tree Board delivered its annual report to the Morris City Council on March 3, outlining grant-funded pruning and planting work, canopy loss from storms and disease, and drafting an emerald ash borer response plan.
Sue Granger, chair of the Morris Tree Board, told the council the board was established by city ordinance in 1997 to manage “public trees” as infrastructure and that larger trees deliver the greatest energy, stormwater and habitat benefits. She said trees help the city’s energy goals, intercept storm runoff, and slow traffic when streets are tree-lined.
Granger summarized two recently awarded grants that total about $133,000. One grant funds structural pruning by an ISA‑certified arborist to increase storm resilience; the contractor, Craig Beyer, has been pruning small trees and performing reduction pruning as a multi‑year effort. The other grant covers tree planting, with roughly 300 trees planned and about 100 already planted. Granger said 16 public trees were planted this year (roughly half by volunteers, half by city crew), volunteers planted about 20 trees at Chizix Field, and the city crew planted about 65 trees.
On pests and canopy threats, Granger said Dutch elm disease continues to move through Morris and that about 14 elms were treated this year. The city has preemptively removed approximately 180 ash trees from boulevards in recent seasons; the tree board and public works identified about 22 additional ash trees targeted for removal this year to spread workload and create space for new plantings. Granger said emerald ash borer was identified in nearby communities and that about one‑third of Morris’s canopy is ash.
The tree board is preparing an emerald ash borer response plan expected in early summer and is using public education to protect existing trees (construction protection handouts, tags on newly planted trees asking neighbors to water, and volunteer Morris Tree Stewards trained by the University of Minnesota). Granger described a cost‑share treatment program: “Dutch elm disease is...very effective” with injections, and ash‑borer treatment costs vary depending on who applies the treatment.
The board also plans a 2025 city tree giveaway of 100 trees for private property with a three‑year watering pledge, and a draft downtown tree plan will be reviewed with a council subcommittee. Council members thanked the board and noted the practical challenges of protecting mature canopy while responding to storm damage.
No formal council action was required on the report; the tree board asked only for continued support and for council input on the draft emerald ash borer response plan and downtown tree plan.
