We will be doing the last four yard tree giveaways this weekend at the following locations:

• Sat. Nov 3rd, 11am-1pm, Second Baptist Church of Frankford (1801 Meadow St. 19124) - Zip codes: 19124, 19137, 19120, 19141, 19126, 19149, 19135

• Sat. Nov 3rd, 2-4pm, Hunting Park Rec Center (900 Hunting Park Ave. 19140) - Zip codes: 19140, 19131, 19121, 19132, 19129, 19127, 19118, 19144

• Sun. Nov 4th, 11am-1pm, Pennypack Environmental Center (8600 Veree Rd. 19115) - Zip codes: 19136, 19152, 19111, and 19115

• Sun. Nov 4th, 2-4pm, Pennypack Environmental Center (8600 Veree Rd. 19115) - Zip codes: 19116, 19154, and 19114

If you missed your chance to get a tree this past weekend, you can come to any of the events listed above as a walk-in participant in the second hour of the event only.

Philadelphia Parks & Recreation arborist Ben Stanko helped new tree owner Martha Onusconich pick out a white fringetree at Columbus Square on Sunday, October 28th.

The TreePhilly Yard Tree Giveaways begin this weekend and will happen rain or shine!  On Saturday we were at the Haverford Library and the New Kensington CDC Garden Center giving out trees, and on Sunday we will be at Columbus Square and the West Oak Lane Library!

Trees lined up and ready to go at the West Oak Lane Library

Haverford Library

New Kensington CDC

The yard trees have arrived at the nursery and we are busy getting ready to distribute them at the eight up coming Yard Tree Giveaway events all over the city!  If you didn’t get a chance to pre-register for the giveaway, you can still get up to two free yard trees per address by coming to the events as a walk-in participant.  Just find your zip code in the list below and please only come to the event you are assigned to (so we have enough trees for everyone).  Walk-in participants will be able to get a tree only in the second hour of the event.  We will be doing another tree giveaway next spring so if you can’t make it the the events this fall please sign up again for the spring giveaway!

Our nursery guard dog, Byrd, watches over the trees as they wait to be distributed to new owners!

• Sat. Oct 27th, 11am-1pm, Haverford Library (5543 Haverford Ave 19139) - Zip codes: 19151, 19143, 19139, 19142, 19153

• Sat. Oct 27th, 2-4pm, NKCDC Garden Center (1825 Frankford Ave. 19125) - Zip codes: 19134, 19133, 19125, 19122, 19123, 19130, 19103, 19102, 19107, 19106

• Sun. Oct 28th, 11am-1pm, Columbus Square (1300 South 12th St. 19147) - Zip codes: 19112, 19148, 19145, 19146, 19147, 19104

• Sun. Oct 28th, 2-4pm, West Oak Lane Library (2000 Washington Lane 19138) - Zip codes: 19138, 19150, 19119, 19128

• Sat. Nov 3rd, 11am-1pm, Second Baptist Church of Frankford (1801 Meadow St. 19124) - Zip codes: 19124, 19137, 19120, 19141, 19126, 19149, 19135

• Sat. Nov 3rd, 2-4pm, Hunting Park Rec Center (900 Hunting Park Ave. 19140) - Zip codes: 19140, 19131, 19121, 19132, 19129, 19127, 19118, 19144

• Sun. Nov 4th, 11am-1pm, Pennypack Environmental Center (8600 Veree Rd. 19115) - Zip codes: 19136, 19152, 19111, and 19115

• Sun. Nov 4th, 2-4pm, Pennypack Environmental Center (8600 Veree Rd. 19115) - Zip codes: 19116, 19154, and 19114

TreePhilly Yard Tree Giveaway

Get up to TWO FREE TREES for your yard this Fall through the TreePhilly Yard Tree Giveaway! Pre-register for your trees here by October 19th, then come pick up your tree at the Yard Tree Giveaway event, where you will learn how to properly plant and care for your new tree. You must own property in Philadelphia and plant the trees in the ground in your private yard space, not in the sidewalk outside of your property. If you don’t pre-register, you can still get a tree by attending one of the giveaways as a walk-in. Walk-ins will be accepted in the second hour of the event, only at the giveaway event assigned to your zip code (this is to ensure that we will have enough trees for everyone!).

• Sat. Oct 27th, 11am-1pm, Haverford Library (5543 Haverford Ave 19139) - Zip codes: 19151, 19143, 19139, 19142, 19153

• Sat. Oct 27th, 2-4pm, NKCDC Garden Center (1825 Frankford Ave. 19125) - Zip codes: 19134, 19133, 19125, 19122, 19123, 19130, 19103, 19102, 19107, 19106

• Sun. Oct 28th, 11am-1pm, Columbus Square (1300 South 12th St. 19147) - Zip codes: 19112, 19148, 19145, 19146, 19147, 19104

• Sun. Oct 28th, 2-4pm, West Oak Lane Library (2000 Washington Lane 19138) - Zip codes: 19138, 19150, 19119, 19128

• Sat. Nov 3rd, 11am-1pm, Second Baptist Church of Frankford (1801 Meadow St. 19124) - Zip codes: 19124, 19137, 19120, 19141, 19126, 19149, 19135

• Sat. Nov 3rd, 2-4pm, Hunting Park Rec Center (900 Hunting Park Ave. 19140) - Zip codes: 19140, 19131, 19121, 19132, 19129, 19127, 19118, 19144

• Sun. Nov 4th, 11am-1pm, Pennypack Environmental Center (8600 Veree Rd. 19115) - Zip codes: 19136, 19152, 19111, and 19115

• Sun. Nov 4th, 2-4pm, Pennypack Environmental Center (8600 Veree Rd. 19115) - Zip codes: 19116, 19154, and 19114

In addition, we recently received word that TreePhilly is the featured project for a new fundraising tool that the City is piloting – Citizinvestor. Citizinvestor is a crowd sourced fundraising website where citizens of a municipality can donate to projects that they would like to see happen in their city, such as TreePhilly. Our target for TreePhilly is $12,875 which will allow us to give away even more trees during the Fall giveaway. We have until Sat. Nov. 10th to raise the money, so please consider supporting us by donating here.

Take a moment to sign up for your free yard tree for the fall giveaway!  New for this Fall:

• Philadelphia homeowners can now sign up for TWO trees for their yard!
• Pre-register for a chance to get the exact tree(s) you want – first take a look at what types will be available in our Tree Type Guide.
• We are partnering with the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society and the Plant One Million campaign, so more tree experts will be available to answer your questions and show you how to plant and care for your new tree.
• The longer, cooler months in the Fall allow your tree’s roots to establish themselves better and produce beautiful, healthy leaves and flowers in the spring!

Sign up for your free trees now!

You can also click here to donate to the Fall campaign, so we can get even more trees planted in the City of Philadelphia in 2012!

We’ve started a TreePhilly Flickr account, so now you can see all of the photos from TreePhilly plantings and giveaways in one spot! Photo sets include Volunteer Plantings, City-wide Yard Tree Giveaways, and TreePhilly on the Road, where you can see some of the fun things that we encounter as we travel around Philadelphia helping people plant more trees in their neighborhood.

TreePhilly Flickr account

If you participated in the Spring 2012 TreePhilly Yard Tree Giveaway Program, we want to hear from you!  We want your feedback so we can make the Fall 2012 giveaway even better.  The survey will only take about 5 minutes and consists of 14 questions with plenty of space to add your comments.  AND if you fill in the survey by Friday, July 6th, you’ll be entered into a raffle to receive a free watering bag for your new tree ($25 value)!

Click here for the TreePhilly feedback survey.

Here’s what people are saying about their experience with the TreePhilly Yard Tree Giveaway:

“I think that this is a wonderful program. I am thankful that Mayor Nutter sponsored/created this great event which shows that he is forward thinking and devoted to the environment and to neighborhoods” 

“This program is awesome and I hope to participate again. Really, this is great to preserving our green areas and to improve the quality of healthy living in the city. Thank you.” 

“This was a great experience and wonderful gift. Thank you for the tree and educating us. Keep up the good work.” 

“The process of planting the tree was actually less work than we anticipated.  It makes us happy every time we walk up our path.” 

“We love our tree!  Thank you for making the process of obtaining and caring for our tree so easy!”

“All went well and we’re thrilled to have a new tree!  Staff was helpful at the Haddington pick-up and we appreciate this program.” 

The Spring Yard Tree Giveaway is over and thousands of people came to pick up their free trees!  Philadelphia Parks & Recreation staff, Tree Tenders, and Lincoln High School students did tree planting and care demonstrations, and everyone went home with a profile of the tree they chose and information on proper planting and care.  If you missed the spring giveaway you can still sign up for the Fall Yard Tree Giveaway by clicking on the link in the left sidebar.

Many thanks to Wells Fargo and all of the community partners who made these events possible!

Here are some photos from the Spring Yard Tree Giveaways:

Wells Fargo volunteers helped people choose the right tree for their yard at the Oak Lane Library during the TreePhilly Week kickoff and Arbor Day event on Sat. April 28th.

Mayor Michael Nutter, Deputy Mayor for Environmental and Community Michael DiBerardinis, state Rep. Dwight Evans, Nick Kulick from the federal EPA, Michelle Laurene from Wells Fargo and David Weston from Oak Lane Community Action Association spoke about the benefits of trees at the TreePhilly Week Kickoff in Oak Lane.

The Wells Fargo horses and carriage came to the TreePhilly Week Kickoff in Oak Lane and gave rides!

Eastern Redbuds (Cercis canadensis) were all lined up before the doors opened at the Frankford giveaway on Wed. April 25th.  Thanks to our partners in Frankford for making this event a success:  Frankford Garden Club, Frankford Parks Group, Frankford CDC, Philly Rising.

Yard tree recipients at the Frankford giveaway attended a tree planting and care demonstration given by Lincoln High School students.

Love for trees spanned the generations at the Haddington giveaway.  These two carried their tree home in their free Wells Fargo tote bag!

Thanks to the extensive response we’ve received from neighbors, businesses, civic groups, and nonprofits across the city, we exceeded our target number and are giving away over 2200 free yard trees this week! If you were one of these applicants, by now you should have received a phone call or email from one of our TreePhilly staff letting you know of your area’s tree pick up location.  Locations will be on various days throughout the city all during TreePhilly week, which runs from April 21st to 29th.  TreePhilly week is supported by Wells Fargo and the Fairmount Park Conservancy, without whom your free tree would not have been possible!

If you missed the spring deadline, there’s no need to despair, as we’ll be doing another giveaway in the fall as well. The deadline for receiving a tree this coming October is on September 30, 2012, so don’t waste any time: get your application for the fall in today. You can find the form in the paragraph below, so help us give away another 2000 free trees!

The Philadelphia Department of Parks & Recreation’s TreePhilly campaign is enabling residents to beautify their homes and blocks, improve their health, reduce their energy costs, and reduce stormwater runoff all in one shot, at no cost. The deadline for the Spring Yard Tree Giveaway has passed, and you can now sign up for the Fall giveaway (which will happen in October or November 2012).   CLICK HERE to fill out your yard tree request form! They’re in 7 different languages, so make copies and pass them around your block - your health and your property values will thank you!

Be sure to continually check this site for all updates and news relating to TreePhilly and new ways you can get involved with greening our city!