Set down roots, water a tree and help bring shade to the city through La Mesa’s free tree program.

The City of La Mesa is offering free trees to residents who have public right-of-ways located in front of their property. Public right-of-ways are the small strips of land between the sidewalk and street that often are covered with grass, dirt or cement.

The free tree program is part of the city’s Climate Action Plan (CAP) and was created in 2018; however, after implementing the free tree program in certain areas needing urban canopy growth, the city is now opening up the program to all residents in La Mesa who have a public right-of-way in front of their property.

According to the urban tree canopy assessment cited in the CAP, “La Mesa has an existing urban forest canopy that covers 18% of the city (or 1,050 acres) with potential canopy coverage of 66% in the region. This measure assumes La Mesa can achieve 33% coverage by 2035, for a total urban forest of 2,450 acres.”

Through a grant provided by CalFire in 2019, the city has worked on planting 350 trees in the public right-of-ways. The grant is set to expire in March 2024 and the city has achieved 75% of its tree planting goals through the partnerships with CalFire, Tree San Diego and Urban Corps, according to Hilary Ego, environmental program manager. Ego said the grant also allowed the city to conduct a tree inventory of all existing trees in the city, author and adopt an urban forest management plan and conduct education and outreach.

“With the free tree planting program, we are encouraging residents to sign up because we only have a certain amount of space in our parks and medians to plant trees, but there are [public] right-of-ways that are great for tree planting,” Ego said. “The city will maintain the trees so they will become part of our tree maintenance schedule. We’re just asking residents to help water them.”

Trees perform vital environmental functions such as removing air and water pollutants and capturing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Additionally, according to Serena Lee, administrative analyst I and member of CAP leadership team, some of the benefits of increasing tree coverage in the city include shade that promotes sustainable energy consumption and reduces the heat island effect. The heat island effect occurs when urban areas have dense concentrations of pavement, buildings and other surfaces that absorb and retain heat. This can increase energy costs and heat-related illness.

According to the county’s Health and Human Services Agency 2021 annual excessive heat report, in 2020 there were 432 heat-related prehospital calls on heat event days and in 2021 there were 223 heat-related prehospital calls on heat event days.

“With these hotter summers, we want to make sure people are staying safe and not overheating. One of the health issues related to climate change is heat illness and heat death,” Lee said. “There needs to be a switch to help residents get used to these hotter summers and more frequent heat related incidents. Part of what tree planting does is not only does it provide shade but it also can cool down the home if it is placed strategically.”

Elektra Fike-Data, Tree San Diego’s executive director, has worked with the city in their tree planting goals and educational outreach.

“It’s definitely a collective effort. Through the climate action plan, as that entire plan is being implemented, the tree element serves as a visual representation of the efforts that the city is making,” Fike Data said. “Trees are tangible. They provide eco-benefits, social and economic [benefits] as well. The city is working very hard to bring the benefits of urban forestry, including green economies, energy reductions and improving mental health through natural solutions, like tree plantings.”

In order to apply for a tree planting, residents can fill out a watering agreement form which will go to the city and its tree planting partners, like Tree San Diego. In the form, applicants can list a preference for the type of tree they would like. Trees offered to homes without utility lines include Bottle Tree, Australian Willow, Chilean Mesquite, Brisbane Box and Cork Oak. Trees offered to homes with utility lines include Chinese Pistache, Crape Myrtle, Bay Laurel, Magnolias “Little Gem” and Western Redbud. According to Lee, preferences are recorded but not guaranteed.

Planting season begins in the fall. An arborist will be dispatched to survey the public right-of-way area to see if it is eligible for planting. The public right-of-way parcel must be three feet by three feet and cannot be cemented/bricked over, according to Lee. If an applicant is a renter or part of an HOA, Ego said she recommends applicants speak to their landlord, property manager or HOA prior to applying. If approved by the City and partnering organizations, a tree will be planted in the public right-of-way, and recipients are expected to follow the watering schedule.

● Year one: five gallons of water, twice a week

● Year two: five to 10 gallons of water, once a week

● Year three: five to 10 gallons of water, twice per month

● Year four and up: As needed in warm months and periods of drought

If you don’t have a public right-of-way parcel in front of your property, Ego said there are other ways you can help contribute to promoting urban greenery such as switching to drought-tolerant landscaping and plants. You may even qualify for rebates. There are also public plantings, online training for tree stewardship and other ways to get involved at the city level and with organizations like Tree San Diego.

“I highly recommend taking advantage of free urban forestry education,” Fike-Data added. “It’s coming directly from our ISA certified arborists. They can attend live educational webinars with them [and] ask questions. It starts with education and awareness about how to care for this living thing and to do that in a careful manner requires learning about it.”

To apply for a public right-of-way tree, fill out a watering form.

You can also learn more information on the City’s CAP website and urban forestry website.