Winnipeg digs in for National Tree Day at Optimist Park

Volunteers gathered Saturday to plant dozens of new trees to improve the city’s canopy.

Volunteers gathered at Optimist Park Saturday afternoon to plant trees and shrubs as part of an initiative for National Tree Day.

“We have three to four different types of shrubs and two different types of trees, and this is going to end up looking more like a forest than a typical boulevard planting,” said Audrey Dallaire-Gagnon, forestry specialist in Manitoba for Tree Canada. “We’re building a diverse canopy.”

The event in Winnipeg was part of a series of events across Canada during National Forest Week.

“We selected Optimist Park because of their passion for the trees. They’re really excited to receive them,” Dallaire-Gagnon said. “Optimist Park has a vision to be a world-class baseball attraction – and it already is, and trees are a really big part of building that vision.”

She emphasized the importance of trees’ vital role in the environment. “We always drive home the importance of trees based on carbon sequestration – they pull carbon out of the air, and they store it inside of themselves.

“We have so many other reasons, though. We have erosion protection, we have the protection of our native species of animals, insects and birds.”

More information is available on Tree Canada’s website.