treeottawa

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ABOUT

Tree Ottawa is an Ecology Ottawa initiative to plant 1 million trees within Ottawa’s city limits as a gift to Canada for its 150 anniversary in 2017.

1 MILLION Trees! That’s 1 tree for every Ottawa resident.

1 tree for me.

1 tree for you!

Tree Ottawa isn’t just about putting tree’s in the ground. It’s also about engaging Ot-tawa residents, private companies and public organizations to grow a greener community. A greener Ottawa. A greener future. Together. That’s what Tree Ottawa is about. It’s an all-inclusive, intergenerational, community-centred initiative that will dramatically increase the scale, ecological diversity and health of Ottawa’s tree canopy.

And this is how we are going to do it: Tree Ot-tawa will help Protect Trees, Plant Trees, and Promote Tree Habitat. We will:

1. Protect trees – by showing Ottawans how to take better care of our existing trees and by making our Adopt-a-Tree web tool available for anyone who wants to adopt a young or sentimental tree.

2. Plant trees – by connecting with con-cerned Ottawa citizens who want to plant trees and by collaborating with local orga-nizations who are already planting trees we will reach our goal. Together.

3. Promote trees – by identifying, protecting and connecting important ecological areas of the city and celebrating the place of trees in our community.

WHY DO WE NEED TREE OTTAWA?

Trees mitigate the effects of climate change, contribute to water retention, add beauty to our urban landscapes and provide us with food, shade, recreation, and noise barriers. They reduce the amount of dust and pollution in the air and replace them with sweet fragrances and fresh oxygen. Urban trees are homes to a multitude of animal species, supplying food, shelter and habitat year-round. Trees are sig-nificant and integral components of our urban ecology.

In recent years trees have been under attack by invasive pests, climate change, drought and severe storm events, as well as by the increasing number and scale of urban de-velopments that replace natural, treed land-scapes with pavement and buildings. In fact, the Emerald Ash Borer will kill 25% of Ottawa’s existing tree canopy in the next 3-5 years. If that wasn’t enough, Ottawa’s tree canopy is aging and many trees will naturally come to the end of their life.

That’s why it is more important than ever we care for our trees, and prevent their further degradation. That’s why we need Tree Ottawa.

This guide has been designed to give the well intentioned Ottawan all the tools necessary to help the future of Ottawa’s tree canopy … YOUR way!

*NOTE: for those of you reading this guide electronically we have hyperlinks for you to follow, for those who are reading this guide in hard copy please find the full links in the endnote*

PROTECTING TREES – THE TREE OTTAWA WAY Want to get involved but don’t have the capacity to plant a tree? Don’t worry! Pro-tecting the trees being planted is equally as important! If you can’t plant. Adopt!

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Many organizations (including the City of Ot-tawa) are working very hard to plant as many trees as possible to combat the threats against Ottawa trees. The trees they plant are young and need care. They need you!

This is where Ecology Ottawa’s Adopt-a-Tree program comes in. Taking care of the trees that are planted is integral to ensuring we have a healthy urban forest in the future. You can adopt one (or more) of the newly planted trees, or any Ottawa tree! Once you have decided to Adopt-a-Tree you can visit Ecol-ogy Ottawa’s Tree Ottawa website and either enter your tree into the Great Ecology Ottawa Tree Map or choose an existing tree and adopt it. You can upload a photo of your tree, keep a blog, give it a name, and see all the other adopted trees in Ottawa!

Once you’ve decided to ‘adopt’, what does that mean? All you have to do is commit to water your tree once a week, and if the tree looks sick or damaged contact the City. It’s that simple!

PLANTING TREES – THE OTTAWA WAY

To plant 1 million trees we need to, well … plant trees!

Although it is imperative that we start planting trees, (and as many trees as possible, and quickly!) it is equally as important that we plant trees smartly. It’s not as simple as: there is an open green space, let’s put a tree there. There are other considerations: Whose land is it? Are there underground pipes? How far are you

from Hydro Lines? Is there a septic system? What kind of tree should you plant? What time of year is it?

Remember the major players:

• Private landowners

• The City of Ottawa

• The National Capital Commission

• Conservation Authorities (Rideau Valley, Mississippi Valley, South Nation)

• Hydro Ottawa

• YOU!

*NOTE: Before any tree goes in the ground you must contact Dig Safe*

Once all these factors have been considered, next you want to make sure that you plant your tree properly! Please visit our website for more detailed information on how-to-plant both sapling trees, and caliper trees.

Alternatively, the City of Ottawa has a variety of tree planting programs, you can find out more on their website. These programs have been working towards greening-up Ottawa’s Urban Canopy for years! Below is a list of the City of Ottawa’s tree planting programs you can take advantage of:

• Trees in Trust: Find out how to have a tree planted in front of your home.

• Commemorative Tree Program: Find out how to dedicate a tree in memory of a loved one.

• Parks and Streetscape Tree Planting: Suggest a location to plant a tree on City property.

• Schoolyard Tree Planting Grant Program: Find out how you can plant trees on your children’s school yard.

And remember! If you can’t plant. Adopt!

PROMOTING TREES – YOUR WAY

One of Ecology Ottawa’s goals is to green-up our tree canopy and to ensure its health and vitality in perpetuity. To ensure that this goal is achieved, Ottawans need to be informed: they need to know that our tree canopy is be-ing threatened; they need to know that newly planted trees require extra care to survive; they need to know that there are people who are trying to make sure that each tree being planted will survive.

So, how can you promote trees? Any way you want! Get creative:

• Contact your local organizations (Commu-nity associations, businesses) and see if they are planting or protecting trees.

• Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and get your personal networks talking about trees.

• Come to Tree Ottawa events, and bring your friends!

• Help neighbours, friends and family that have just planted trees, or are planning on planting trees.

• Write to your City Councillor and tell them how important Ottawa’s urban tee canopy is to you.

• Get involved with the Tree Ottawa Initiative by becoming an Ambassador.

Ecology Ottawa wants Ottawans to re-discover their love of trees and inspire them to Protect, Plant and Promote!

If you want to get involved or have any ques-tions please visit our website. Alternatively you can contact our Tree Ottawa Organizer: Velta Tomsons at velta.tomsons@ecologyottawa.ca

We look forward to hearing from you!

Links

1. www.treeottawa.org

2. http://ottawa.ca/en/residents/water-and-environment/trees-and-community-forests

3. http://www.ncc-ccn.gc.ca/property-man-agement/what-we-manage

4. http://www.rvca.ca/programs/forestry/in-dex.html

5. http://mvc.on.ca/

6. http://www.nation.on.ca/

7. https://hydroottawa.com/residential/reno-vating/

8. http://www.digsafe.ca/

9. https://twitter.com/treeottawa

10. https://www.facebook.com/ecologyottawa

11. http://instagram.com/ecologyottawa