135,652 Trees Planted in California and Florida

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April 27, 2019 3 min read

135,652 Trees Planted in California and Florida

We're happy to share the details of two recently completed reforestation projects!

Let's start with the west coast.

Over 100,000 Trees Planted in Mendocino to Promote Forest Fire Recovery.

Thanks to your support, and with great help from our local partners on the ground, we restored more than 460 acres of forest affected by the 2017 Redwood Valley Fire in Mendocino County.

Overall, the project resulted in 101,530 trees planted!

Mendocino County was hit hard by the wildfires, losing more than 36,000 acres of forest. On top of that, forests had already been degraded by severe drought and a bark beetle infestation which impacted many trees across California and North America. These factors raised the intensity of the wildfires, offering up more dead and dried out trees as fuel.

A year later, when the fires stopped and the land had enough time to recover, our partners got to work and started rebuilding the forest.

We focused on three main areas: Redwood Valley, Potter Valley, and the Willits Watershed.

Restoring these areas helps some of the most beautiful forests in the country recover, and greatly benefits critical watersheds that help supply water to more than 560,000 residents of Mendocino and Sonoma counties. That's because trees filter water through their roots and control the steady flow of water downstream.

Reforestation is an important part of restoring ecosystems, particularly after wildfires. Planting native tree species and other local plants helps maintain the forest's balance, stops the proliferation of invasive species, and returns the forest to its natural beauty. As these trees grow up to be big and strong they’ll also help stabilize the soil and prevent erosion as the forest floor continues to recover.

That’s more than 100,000 more trees bringing California’s beautiful wilderness back from an intense few years of fire.

burned and scarred landscape with newly planted trees

close up of newly planted sapling next to burnt tree trunk

Florida’s Seminole State Forest is a Lot Greener With Over 34,000 More Trees.

Around the same time, we were also able to get trees planted all the way on the other US coast in Florida.

Working with the Florida Forest Service we planted 34,122 trees in the Seminole State Forest to benefit the region’s communities and the forest’s incredibly diverse wildlife.

Why was planting so necessary in this forest? After the encroachment of the Sandhill Pine tree species, restoration of the Isti Sandhill in Seminole State Forest was necessary to ensure a natural and functioning ecosystem.

The forest contains nearly all of Central Florida's naturally occurring vegetative communities, making it critical habitat to be preserved. Reintroducing the Longleaf Pine tree species will stabilize the uniquely diverse and fragile ecosystem and improve forest management in order to reduce future wildfires and protect the area's wildlife, including the Florida black bear, Pine Warbler, Woodpecker, and Gopher Tortoise!

Seminole State Forest is one of many public properties in the scenic Wekiva River Basin. These properties were acquired under the Conservation and Recreation Lands (CARL), Save Our Rivers (SOR), Preservation 2000 (P2000), and Florida Forever programs to protect significant habitat for endangered species.

Since 1990, Seminole State Forest has been managed by the Florida Forest Service, with the goal of protecting and maintaining the forest's native biological diversity while integrating public use of the resources.

man removing longleaf pine saplings from box

man bending over and planting longleaf pine sapling

And in case you're wondering why the trees look so... grassy, that's the way young Longleaf Pine seedlings look at this stage! Check out this awesome life cycle from the Longleaf Pine Alliance.