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Delaware’s Urban and Community Forestry Program offers a range of technical and financial assistance programs to help municipalities, nonprofit groups, community associations, and homeowners to plant and care for their trees.
The Delaware Forest Service has full-time forestry staff who assist cities, towns, and communities with the management and care of their urban forestry resources. These foresters can help guide your community in developing a management plan for its publicly owned forests (such as city or county parks, street trees, etc.). Foresters are able to do sick tree calls, answer tree questions, and make species and placement recommendations. Our staff also works with developers, planners, and engineers to help educate these individuals on methods to preserve trees during the development process. Your trees are a valued resource; don’t trust their care to just anybody. Hire an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) certified arborist. An ISA-certified arborist is specially trained to care for individual trees.
Tree work should only be done by those properly insured, trained,and equipped to work safely in trees.
Find an ISA-certified arborist
Urban and Community Grant Program
The Delaware Urban and Community Forestry Program is offering grants up to $5,000 for tree planting projects on public land or to help communities complete a professional tree inventory. The competitive grants – open to all municipalities, homeowner associations, and certified 501(c)(3) non-profits in the State of Delaware – require a 50-50 match in either cash (non-federal funds) or in-kind services, which includes volunteer or staff time, equipment rental, or supplies. Requests can range from a minimum of $500 to a maximum of $5,000 in one of two project categories: tree planting or tree management (professional tree inventory only).
Interested applicants must schedule a site visit with Delaware Forest Service urban forestry staff before applying and submit their application using the online form.
The deadline to apply is March 1, 2019.
Thanks to federal funding, more than $50,000 will be available for grants. In 2018, the program awarded more than $58,000 for 16 tree projects.
Applications will be judged on a competitive basis by a grant committee of the Delaware Community Forestry Council. Eligible projects must be performed on public lands within the community. Priority will be given to first time applicants, Tree Friendly Communities, and applicants that have passed an Urban Tree Canopy Goal Resolution (only applies to Municipalities). Complete details at delawaretrees.com.
“Community forests are critical to our quality of life. Trees provide cleaner air and water, wildlife habitat, lower energy costs, natural beauty, and improved property values. The Delaware Forest Service’s urban grant program is designed to help communities harness these many benefits. Tree projects can generate positive and lasting effects for years to come while also bringing residents and volunteers together to make their communities more livable and enjoyable,” said Kesha Braunskill, the Delaware Forest Service urban and community forestry program director.
** Online applications require a Google Account.
Read instructions here on how to set up an account.
As part of its mission, several informative publications, resources, and links are available to help with proper planning and developing effective strategies for tree planting, care, and management.
Email:
Kesha Braunskill
Related Topics: Urban and Community Forestry Program