Free Trees!

Live Oak

Trees are an essential part of our community, providing clean air, cooling shade, habitat for wildlife, beauty and much more. Unfortunately, many trees are lost each year due to development, hurricanes, pests, and drought. To help replant trees, a group of local and state organizations has been giving away free tree seedlings to area residents since 1997 at an annual event known as TreeFest. 

TreeFest 2012 will be held Friday, Jan. 20 from 10am to 5pm, and Saturday, Jan. 21 from 10am to 5pm, in the JC Penney wing of Independence Mall in Wilmington. Residents are invited to come by and pick up five free tree seedlings during TreeFest. 

Seedling trees start out small but grow quickly. This 15’ live oak growing in my yard was planted as a 1’ tall TreeFest seedling in 2003. To learn more about the types of trees available at TreeFest and how to establish young tree seedlings, read the rest of the article on the Pender Cooperative Extension website: http://pender.ces.ncsu.edu/index.php?page=news&ci=LAWN+166


If you can’t make TreeFest, or need more trees, seedlings can be purchased from the NC Forest Service through their website, http://nc-forestry.stores.yahoo.net/. Most varieties are available in bundles of 10.