Volunteers needed to water city's newly-planted trees

The following was submitted by TreesMedford.

The non-profit TreesMedford is again organizing residents to water the youngest trees planted by the city of Medford. Volunteering to water helps trees to survive and keeps Medford cool and green. Residents can sign up to water a recently planted tree using a map on the TreesMedford website.

The trees planted by the city each year are a significant investment in time, effort and money. You can help make sure that the investment is not wasted, and that you get to enjoy the results. When the trees planted by the contractor die, the contractor is required to replace them once, but the community loses a year's tree growth and the replacements are not guaranteed. The city's budget is not sufficient to replace all the trees that are removed. The city's recently published Urban Forest Management Plan found that Medford is steadily losing its tree canopy. Decreasing Medford's tree canopy will increase the heat in our city.

Residents can also help by sustaining the trees in their backyards. Large trees are immensely important in reducing the city's heat. Trees also provide screening from nearby neighbors, reduce air pollution, reduce flooding and erosion, calm traffic, improve the shopping experience in commercial areas, increase property values, provide wildlife habitat and generally improve our quality of life.