Trees Please: More than 1,200 native trees will be given away to Hamilton residents

Hamilton residents have even more opportunities to add more green to their landscapes.

Trees Please, a joint program between Environment Hamilton and the Hamilton Naturalists’ Club, is giving away more than 1,200 native trees to help grow the city’s urban forest.

“Trees provide a  myriad of benefits to the city, our neighbourhoods, and our health and wellbeing,” explained a spokesperson for Trees Please. “They filter pollutants from our air, mitigate the urban heat island effects and keep us cool in the summer, reduce pressure on our stormwater management systems, make urban residents healthier, provide habitat for other species, and enhance biodiversity in our city.”

“They even increase your property value!” they added.

To request a tree, residents simply need to fill out this form. 

The deadline for requests is end-of-day Oct. 14, 2022.

Hamilton residents will also be able to choose which tree they fancy.

“We want people to choose the right tree for their space, and thus we offer several options of small, medium, and large trees,” say Trees Please organizers. “We will try our best to provide their first choice.”

The choices include:

• Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum) | Large | Up to 35 metres 
• Red Oak (Quercus rubra) | Large | Up to 30 metres 
• Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera) l Large l Up to 18 metres 
• Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis) | Medium | Up to 9 metres 
• Eastern White Cedar (Thuja occidentalis) | Medium | Up to 15 metres 
• Pin Cherry (Prunus pensylvanica) | Medium | Up to 9 metres 
• Smooth Serviceberry (Amelanchier laevis) l Medium l Up to 13 metres 
• Blue Beech (Carpinus caroliniana) | Small | Up to 8 metres 
• Bush Honeysuckle (Diervilla lonicera) l Small l Up to 1 metre 

The trees range from 50 to 100 cm tall and are housed in one to two-gallon pots.

Organizers say they can be transported by car, in a bike pannier, in a wagon, or even carried. Large weed mats will also be provided.

Trees must be planted within the City of Hamilton boundaries, only one tree per household (although there may be opportunities for additional trees after the form closes), residents are responsible for selecting a suitable planting location and planting their trees, and they will need to water the tree regularly for the first two years (hose on a very slow trickle for approximately 15 minutes, one or two times per week).

Recipients are prompted to select a pick-up date and location on the online form. Specific details will be emailed closer to the date.