3 days ago
Regina gives away 1,000 seedlings, living up to its ‘tree city' title
Wednesday morning in Victoria Park was a day of giving for the City of Regina, as 1,000 seedling trees were given to the public.
The tree of choice this time around was known as Adam's Elderberry.
'It is nice and flowery in the springtime for your backyards,' said Veronica Schroder, who is the coordinator of forestry, pest and horticulture at the City of Regina. 'It [the elderberry] will fruit in the mid to late summer and then you'll be able to use the fruit for jams and jellies and other preserves such as that.'
For six years Regina has been marked as a 'Tree City of the World,' which are cities that meet core standards in urban planning. Regina is one of 210 cities internationally and 21 across Canada with the distinct title.
Despite not being in a natural green zone, the city is doing what it can to make sure citizens live in a city with more than 500,000 trees as part of a 'prairie landscape.' The city hopes to be a 100 per cent renewable community by 2050.
'Regina has a very specific climate,' said Schroder. 'It's very harsh, it has really cold winters and has very extreme heat in the summer at times. So, we have a limited plant palette of what will actually grow.'
The city said there will likely be another tree giveaway on Sept. 24, which also happens to be National Tree Day.
