SEA Free Shade Trees

Increase Redding’s Urban Forest Canopy!

Would you love to have a nice, shaded front yard? Do you already have one but know someone else who might want one, for free?

SEA is excited to announce that we’ve received a grant from The Bower Charitable Foundation to plant 50 free shade trees in the front yards of 50 residents in the City of Redding during 2023!

The planting of these trees will help not only shade homes and provide lowered air conditioning costs but will also sequester carbon and provide a habitat for wildlife. In addition, planting trees can help prevent the “heat island effect.” A heat island refers to buildings, structures, and streets in a city that absorb solar radiation throughout the day and dissipate that heat into the air throughout the day and night. Air conditioning units and vehicles also are part of the heat island.

Studies by groups such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have shown that a city can be as much as 12 degrees hotter than the surrounding countryside which is covered by natural vegetation. Did you know that sidewalks can be as much as 160 degrees hotter than the surrounding air? The heat-island effect can be alleviated by the planting of a thick tree canopy that shades streets, buildings, and sidewalks.

Redding residents interested in obtaining a free, front yard shade tree will need to fill out the form below and commit to watering the tree for the first three years to ensure that the newly planted tree will be able to adequately root and stabilize for future growth. We ask that homeowners help SEA volunteers prepare their yards and help plant the trees. We will have a pre-selected group of trees, some of which will be native trees. SEA will advise homeowners of specific trees that will be the right fit for their yard, so as to optimize survival rate.

There will be specific tree-planting weekends in 2023—several in the fall and possibly one this spring. If you would like to volunteer to help plant these shade trees, please fill out the Contact Form.