Master Composter Recyclers Help Edmonton Re-Naturalize

Last Tuesday, MCRs planted 207 trees & shrubs at our annual summer planting event.  Thanks to everyone who came out. It was a big success.

We finished planting just before the rain and thunder came and all the plants benefited from warm showers, later that night. Perfect timing!

Staff with the City of Edmonton's Root for Trees program taught us about naturalization of urban areas. This includes letting the grass in an area grow (no mowing) in the first year and planting trees and shrubs in the second year. The new plants slowly take over, returning the area to a more natural landscape.

All in all, it takes several years to naturalize an area. Naturalization increases Edmonton's urban forest and offers many benefits. For one, this reduces mowing and maintenance.

MCRs chatted while we planted. The 175 trees & shrubs and 32 wildflowers included trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides), white spruce (Picea glauca), red osier dogwood (Cornus sericea), prickly rose (Rosa acicularis), and graceful cinquefoil (Potentilla gracilis).

Thank you, once again, to everyone who came out.