Charlottesville Area Tree Stewards and members of this year’s CATS training class have added nearly 50 trees to Albemarle County parklands in recent weeks.
On November 5, 30 trainees and 17 CATS mentors planted 22 trees at Darden Towe Park, including black gums (Nyssa sylvatica), white oaks (Quercus alba), tulip trees (Liriodendron tulipifera), Kentucky coffee trees (Gymnocladus dioicus), eastern redbuds (Cercis canadensis) and Osage orange trees (Maclura pomifera).
On November 12, 21 CATS members and trainees, along with three student volunteers from U.Va. and three community volunteers from the Crozet area, planted 19 trees at Mint Springs Valley Park. Among them were bald cypresses (Taxodium distichum), sycamores (Platanus occidentalis) and swamp white oaks (Quercus bicolor), as well as tulip trees and black gums. Earlier, several CATS volunteers planted two Osage oranges and four Kentucky coffee trees at Mint Springs.
The Tree Stewards worked with the Albemarle County Parks and Recreation Department to select the tree species and planting locations. Many thanks to County parks staff for preparing the planting holes and for providing water and mulch for the projects, which were made possible by a Virginia Trees for Clean Water grant from the Virginia Department of Forestry.
Below, tree planting at Darden Towe Park. Photos by JoAnn Dalley.
Below, tree planting at Mint Springs Valley Park
