Simply put, trees make our lives better and our communities more livable. Just imagine how much colder in winter, hotter in summer, windier all year and less attractive our communities, acreages and farms would be without them. Trees soften the harsh Great Plains climate, reduce energy consumption (and utility costs), bring birds and other wildlife to us, improve property values, help capture and filter stormwater, and they provide incredible year-round beauty and interest. It’s important to remember that the best of our community trees didn’t get here by chance. People planted them and we must continue to plant them if we want to maintain the canopy around us.
What NSA is doing:
- Through our network of affiliated sites scattered across the state, NSA has been trialing and displaying an incredible variety of trees for nearly 40 years. We’ve learned a great deal about what does and doesn’t grow here, along with important care and placement requirements of different species. Incredibly, over 200 distinct species and hybrids have proven adaptable to our relatively treeless region.
- NSA scours the countryside for seeds and propagules of underutilized trees, grows them and makes them available for purchase and planting. We give a strong emphasis to regionally native trees that offer more ecological benefits.
- NSA provides funding and technical assistance for public-benefiting tree-planting projects in communities across the state.
What you can do:
- Anyone can help plant trees. If you own or help manage property, plant a tree or several. If you don’t own property, talk friends or family members into planting and caring for trees on their properties, or letting you do it. However, try not to plant more trees than you can adequately care for.
- Approach decision makers of large public properties such as schools, parks, fairgrounds and cemeteries about planting trees for the public good.
- Promote the benefits of trees to your friends, family members and coworkers.
How your neighborhood, business or community can help:
- Communities and neighborhoods should be proactive with tree-planting in common areas and public spaces like parks, trail corridors and school sites. Public entities can seek donations and volunteers to help fund, plant and manage tree-planting where it makes sense.
- Communities should be much more proactive in planting and managing trees on streets and transportation corridors. Some of the most beneficial trees are those that grow along our streets and they deserve special attention and care.
- Businesses can plant trees on their properties, donate to tree-planting causes and enable their employees to volunteer for tree-planting projects.
