Guest article: Help local non-profit plant trees by bike

Planting by bike. Looks like fun!
(Photo: Mary Kay Nitchie)

[The article below was sent in by Andy Meeks, volunteer and outreach manager with local non-profit group, Friends of Trees.]

A few years ago, Friends of Trees started organizing Plant By Bike events where one or more crews of trees planters was solely bike-powered. Our typical planting day is made up for anywhere between 10-25 crews of 8-10 people each and one pick-up truck that carries trees, tools and other materials for the planting crew. Each of these crews plants about 10 trees in a morning that lasts from 9:00 – 1:00pm.

These plantings are always a great time and all volunteers for our Neighborhood Tree plantings get free breakfast treats and coffee in the morning and then a potluck lunch hosted by our neighborhood volunteers at the completion of the event — around 1:00pm or so. We provide gloves, tools and guidance and all we ask is that people dress for the weather and bring their bikes and, if they have them, trailers, carts, etc. to help move the trees and tools around.

The whole Plant By Bike thing started very organically a few years ago with some volunteers of ours who took up the mantle of being Plant By Bike champions. One of our “Plant By Bike” champions Peter Nierengarten recently moved out of town and we’ve lost one of our better sources for volunteer recruitment. We’ve been emailing the folks who have planted with us in the past years to let them know of our upcoming planting dates, but we really need help getting the word out.

Here’s the list of upcoming events:

1/19/13 – Laurelhurst, Kerns, Sunnyside, N. Tabor Neighborhood Planting
1/21/13 – I-205 Multi-Use Path Green Space Planting (SE Portland)
2/2/13 – Piedmont, Woodlawn Neighborhood Planting
2/23/13 – Westside Vancouver Neighborhood Planting (Vancouver)
3/2/13 – Montavilla, Mt. Tabor Neighborhood Planting

You can learn more and register for an upcoming event on the Friends of Trees blog.

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