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Consider sponsoring a tree (or two or three!) in your neighborhood and become a Cambridge Urban Forest Friend this spring! We need volunteers to help care for and grow our urban forest. All you need to do is sign up online and provide basic care for your tree. Forest Friends water their trees weekly during the spring, summer, and fall. Gator bags will be added to new trees when the watering season starts mid-May. If your tree is missing a gator bag, you can pick one up at the Public Works office at 147 Hampshire St. Forest Friends can also help by removing waste, trash, and weeds in the tree well.
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Maintaining Your Tree Well |
Tree well maintenance is an important aspect of caring for street trees. Trash, pet waste, and weeds can damage trees and inhibit growth. A healthy forest starts from the ground up.
- Remove all trash and weed.
- Remove unwanted and overgrown plant material. Even if only perennials were planted within the tree well, overgrown plants compete with the tree for water, nutrients, and space. Remove overgrown plants, weeds, trash, and pet waste. If salt is used on the sidewalk near your street tree during the winter, flush out any accumulated salts with a garden hose run on a low pressure.
- Mulch
- Mulching helps to retain moisture, regulate soil temperature, and reduce weeds. Public Works provides a bag of free compost/mulch to Forest Friends for their street trees. Pick up a bag at 147 Hampshire St. Apply mulch in a thin layer (2-3 inches thick) over the roots but keep the trunk and root flare clear of mulch. Avoid a mulch volcano!
- Planting in the tree well
- Remember that tree health always comes first. If you decide to plant within the tree well, please only choose plants that won’t compete with the tree for resources. Perennial bulbs are a great option because they only need to be planted once. Avoid annuals like marigolds and sunflowers and never plant grasses or vining plants like ivy. Digging up the soil can disturb the delicate feeder roots of a tree so limit the number of times you plant within a tree well.
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Photo on left showing tree planted at the correct height with root flare above grade. Photo on right shows a tree planted too deep, root flare buried. |
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Hold onto Yard Waste Until Collection Begins April 1 |
Spring weather is here and yard cleanups have begun! Our curbside yard waste pickup begins on April 1, and we ask for your cooperation in holding onto your yard waste until then. Please refrain from placing yard waste in the trash. There are numerous benefits to waiting until our pickup service starts including cost savings and environmental impacts. By utilizing our curbside pickup services, you help ensure that yard waste is properly managed and recycling into beneficial materials like compost. |
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Heading Species Highlight: Beech (Fagus sp.) |
Beech trees are known for their smooth bark and elegant form. American beech is a common forest tree in Massachusetts but in Cambridge, you will most likely see European beech in our parks, yards, and campuses. Beech trees face several pest and disease issues, including a new disease called Beech Leaf Disease (BLD). BLD is believed to affect all species of beech. BLD is non-native. It is present in Middlesex County but it has not yet been detected in Cambridge. It is spread by nematodes that damage the leaves of beech trees. Scientists have not yet found an effective treatment. The nematodes overwinter in the beech tree’s buds, causing damage to the leaves before they unfurl. Affected leaves appear distorted, with dark banding in between the veins of the leaf. Damaged leaves are often dropped by the tree and new leaves may emerge, which drains the tree of its energy stores. The Urban Forestry Division is closely monitoring the City's beech trees and treating beech trees with treatments known to control general infections and boost tree health.
For more information on BLD please see the UMass Extention and DCR’s websites:
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Copper Beech at Main Library |
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Upcoming Event: Arbor Week 2024 |
Cambridge celebrates Arbor Week from April 22 through April 26! Come meet Urban Forestry staff, Committee on Public Planting members, and Green Cambridge staff at one of our tabling events, pick up a free tree seedling, join us for an East Cambridge Tree Walk, and more!
Events are scheduled all week, view the full schedule here. |
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Sign Up for a Free Tree with the Canopy Crew |
If you have space for a tree on your property, Green Cambridge can plant a free native tree to help expand Cambridge’s urban tree canopy! If you own your home Cambridge, MA and would like Green Cambridge to plant a tree in your yard for FREE visit:
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Contact
For question about the Cambridge Urban Forest Friends, please contact Kristen Kelleher, Community Relations Manager at 617-349-4825/ kkelleher@cambridgema.gov.
**Please let us know if you no longer are caring for your street tree and we will remove you from the database and future e-mails.**
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