Urban Forestry

Anyone who cares about trees and understands how they help humans and wildlife should volunteer with us. You can help us to replace trees lost to storms, wildfires, disease, or human removal. Shreveport has been recognized as a Tree City USA recipient for the past 24 years!

Urban & Community Forestry Program

Shreveport Green partners with the Louisiana Urban and Community Forestry Program to make citizens aware of how valuable city trees are to their lives. The eight-month program increases public awareness of the benefits of trees, the best trees to plant for Northwest Louisiana, when and how to plant trees, and how to maintain trees.

Arbor Day Celebration

Louisiana celebrates Arbor Day each year on the 3rd Friday in January. Shreveport Green usually conducts activities in January to raise awareness for better tree selection, plantings, and maintenance habits.

Benefits and Facts About Trees

Trees are important to humans and wildlife:

• Reduce air pollution
• Reduce conditions that cause asthma and other respiratory problems
• Lower heat temperatures and provide shade
• Reduce energy costs when planted near buildings
• Reduce noise caused by traffic
• Tree roots stabilize soil to prevent erosion
• Decrease storm water runoff which reduces flooding
• Trees are shelter to many animals

Did You Know...

• Urban trees in the United States remove 711,000 tons of air pollution annually ( a $3.8 billion value)
• Trees absorb these gases from the air: carbon dioxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrous oxides and other pollutants
• The First Arbor Day celebration - was held April 10, 1872 in Nebraska
• Louisiana celebrates Arbor Day the 3rd Friday in January
• Our state tree is the Bald Cypress
• For more tree facts visit: www.ACTrees.org

NeighborWoods

Shreveport Green annually holds a NeighborWoods Tree Planting Project. Dated will be held in the fall and determined annually. The Home Depot Foundation works with non-profit partners to restore urban forests in order to create healthier natural areas and a better environment for our communities. Through the National NeighborWoods Program, the Home Depot Foundation is funding urban forestry efforts that support community development in neglected neighborhoods. The NeighborWood Program's goals are to increase volunteerism to benefit urban forests, disseminate information on best practices in the field, replicate the NeighborWoods concept in additional communities, and build a national collaborative network of community tree-planting organizers. The Alliance for Community Trees facilitates this community changing program.

More than aesthetically pleasing, urban trees are a vital component of the infrastructure of any community, providing multiple economic and health benefits. We believe in the preservation and restoration of our urban forests. The Home Depot Foundation believes urban forestry efforts should:

• Incorporate a diverse array of trees to guard against disease and infestations
• Utilize native trees to take advantage of the region's climate & conserve water
• Engage community volunteers in the planting & maintenance of their neighborhood trees

The partnership between Shreveport Green and NeighborWoods is a perfect match! Specific areas of our local community have sustained tornado and ice storm damage over the last four years. Additionally, severe droughts over the past five years have drastically impacted the viability of many of our trees. Our CityGreen analysis showed that portions of many of our older neighborhoods are sorely lacking in canopy cover. Three of these at-risk neighborhoods were directly affected by the tornado with the loss of 216 trees, and these will be the heart of our project. We plan to "re-green" portions of the neighborhoods as a way not only to visually enhance the streets, but to address health, societal, and economic issues as well. These specific neighborhoods selected exhibit moderate to severe crime rates and a decided lack of community. By increasing the canopy cover, we hope to offer the residents a cooler and more attractive environment, thus encouraging them to mingle outside and interact with their neighbors, as well as enjoying all of the benefits that a good tree canopy can offer!

Regional Growing Station

Located at Walter B. Jacobs Nature Park, our Regional Growing Station covers almost an acre and is full of native species trees. Most of the trees are grown from seedlings and maintained until they are large enough to be planted at schools and other public places. Recently we've added an orchard section to house fruit trees for our community orchards. Begun in 1992 with a grant from The Tree Trust and a partnership with Caddo Parish Parks, the station has been enlarged and upgraded over the years. The latest upgrade is due to a grant from UPS through Keep America Beautiful and enabled us to create our orchard section.

Trees are available on a regional basis to communities and nonprofits to plant and maintain. Contact Donna Curtis at 219-1888 to inquire about availability.