Shannon Gutsokie, a Communications Specialist with South Nation Conservation, says her organization is set to plant more than 230,000 trees this year.
That breaks the group’s previous record, set last year, by a few hundred trees, according to Gutsokie.
Caroline Goulet, one of the organization’s foresters, says her team is excited to be breaking the record.
“We’re thrilled to plant another record number of native trees this spring,” she says, “and work on behalf of member municipalities and residents to deliver essential environmental services while increasing local forest cover.”
Gutsokie says most of the trees are being planted on private property, but many will also end up growing along county roads and on other public land in our area.
Community Lands and Outreach Lead John Mesman says more than 1,200 of the trees are being planted near hospitals in our region, which he hopes will show some appreciation for what frontline healthcare workers have done throughout the pandemic.
“Trees are resilient, like us,” Mesman says. “And we hope that newly planted trees will inspire others and provide some hope for the future.”