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Board highlights Arbor Day giveaway, CenterPoint donation and efforts to place leftover trees
Summary
Tree Advisory Board members said CenterPoint donated trees for an Arbor Day giveaway; about 100 trees remained and the board is arranging block-by-block placement and a nursery option. Members emphasized aftercare and targeting planting where canopy provides most benefit.
Members of the Evansville City Tree Advisory Board reviewed the results of the recent Arbor Day tree giveaway and discussed strategies to place leftover trees and build urban canopy.
Sean, a board member and staff liaison, said CenterPoint sponsored the giveaway and that the board adhered strictly to a one-tree-per-person rule this time, which left about 100 trees unclaimed. He said most trees distributed at the event were taken in the first 15 minutes.
“a majority of the trees were gone within the first hour. Well, just actually, it was in the first 15 minutes,” Sean said.
Board members described outreach plans to find homes for remaining trees: going door to door in targeted neighborhoods, using the mayor’s block-by-block cleanup events to ask residents if they want free trees, and placing unclaimed stock into the city’s tree nursery. Sean said some giveaway trees left the city limits but still contribute to regional canopy.
Paul Bausman and Paul Johnson both praised the organization of the giveaway. Members suggested adding smaller under–power-line trees (for planting under utility lines) to future giveaways and continuing demonstration plantings that show proper planting technique and aftercare. One board member noted that aftercare — protecting young trees from mower damage and ensuring proper watering — is essential for saplings to survive long enough to substantially increase canopy cover.
The board also discussed outreach and research: members circulated an Indiana University canopy study comparing Evansville favorably to larger cities and referenced national reporting on canopy loss in other cities to frame local work. The board said it will continue working with neighborhood associations, the CenterPoint donation contact, and volunteers to place remaining trees and to use volunteer events to plant them when suitable sites are confirmed.
Ending: The board asked staff to continue placement efforts and to report back on how many remaining giveaway trees are planted in-city, placed in the nursery, or otherwise allocated.
