Urban Tree Planting

Planting a tree seems straightforward. Dig a hole, place the tree, cover it with soil, water it, and walk away. It’s a familiar gesture seen in community drives, school campuses, and political campaigns. But while planting is easy, establishing a healthy, long-living tree that performs the functions for which it was planted, is not.

Too often, trees die within the first few years, or they survive but never thrive—stunted, stressed, and failing to deliver the shade, biodiversity, or other environmental benefits we expect. This happens because the process is rarely approached with the right understanding or preparation.

That’s where this course comes in.

We focus on urban tree planting because it represents the most challenging context in which to establish trees. Cities present a unique mix of constraints: social conditioning, compacted soils, limited rooting space, utility conflicts, pollution, vandalism, and pressure for rapid results. If you can successfully plant trees in an urban setting, you can do it anywhere.

This course blends practical guidance with ecological principles, helping you plan, plant, and maintain trees for long-term success. You’ll learn how to assess sites, select suitable species, implement best practices, and avoid common failures—supported by a field-tested checklist that you can use on any project.