In 2020, about 200 volunteers helped plant trees at Crosby Farm Regional Park near the Mississippi River in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
They helped launch a 20-year project that seeks to identify which tree species will grow well in the region as the climate warms and precipitation becomes more extreme.
Emma Vanhdy of the nonprofit Mississippi Park Connection coordinates volunteers for the project.
She says they planted more than 1,000 trees across 24 research plots. Some plots contain species already common in the area.
Vanhdy: “So mainly cottonwood, silver maple … with a few other native species.”
Others contain species more common farther south, such as sycamore and sweet gum.
Volunteers also help maintain the plots and provide eyes on the ground.
Vanhdy: “They are associated with one plot, and so they know that plot very well.”
They monitor the trees’ health, note when the trees flower and drop leaves, and measure soil moisture and temperature.
These observations will help researchers determine which tree species will grow best in the region as the climate warms, so landowners and forest managers can plant trees that are likely to thrive long-term.
Reporting credit: Sarah Kennedy / ChavoBart Digital Media
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