Savannah Tree Foundation looking to plant 175 trees

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - Georgia Arbor Day is coming up in a few weeks, but the Savannah Tree Foundation is getting an early start to their planting.

Starting this weekend, the Savannah Tree Foundation will be hosting weekly tree planting events.

They have a goal to plant nearly 200 trees, but they need your help.

These events will be rain or shine. The weather in general this time of year is the best time to plant.

That is why all month long the Savannah Tree Foundation will be planting 175 trees at locations all around the area.

The trees will be native to Georgia, like live oaks and magnolias, however it will depend on the location which trees will do best where.

“All new trees go through transplant shock and so what we are trying to do is mitigate that as much as possible so if you plant in August when it is super hot, it going to be detrimental to the tree so we want to plant before it gets too hot so that we can get watering bags on them, water them through the summer and help them really thrive,” said Savannah Tree Foundation Executive Director Zoe Rinker.

All of the trees are big, somewhere between eight to 12 feet tall. They welcome volunteers of all ages to come out and help in the process.

The Savannah Tree Foundation says this will be a record year for them by getting more trees planted than any other year.

“We are focusing on recreational areas this year because as everyone knows it gets really hot here in Savannah so by trying to shade these recreational areas, it keeps people out and active throughout the year and also keep the air clean, make sure we are continuing to capture carbon in the trees, help with storm water management,” Rinker said.

If you are interested in helping out, they are asking for volunteers of all ages to get the trees in the ground. The first event is happening Saturday. For a full list of dates and times this month, visit their website.