Once again, TreePhilly is offering 50 or 100 trees and grants worth $500 that will enable Philadelphia community groups to host yard tree giveaways in their neighborhoods this spring.

TreePhilly is a program of Philadelphia Parks and Recreation in partnership with the Fairmount Park Conservancy and Wells Fargo. TreePhilly’s efforts are in direct response to Mayor Nutter’s Greenworks Philadelphia goal to increase tree canopy coverage to 30 percent in all neighborhoods.

The Community Yard Tree Giveaway Grant Program launched in Fall 2014 and gave out five grants and 300 trees in the neighborhoods that need them. This round, TreePhilly is giving out an additional two grants (seven grants total).

2014 Grantees included:

• Berachah Baptist Church and the Philadelphia Urban Roots Collective (PURC) in West Oak Lane (19138)
• Esperanza in Hunting Park (19140)
• Fleisher Art Memorial in Bella Vista (19147, 19148)
• New Kensington Community Development Corp (NKCDC) and East Kensington Neighbors Association (EKNA) in Kensington (19125, 19134)
• Urban Tree Connection in Haddington (19139)

Any community groups or businesses that serve Philadelphians, including civic associations, community development corporations, nonprofits, schools, faith-based organizations, and local businesses, are encouraged to apply.

Grant recipients will have the opportunity to provide different types of free trees – including fruit trees, flowering trees, and shade trees at special events throughout April and May. All winners will receive event planning and educational support from TreePhilly. However, only nonprofit grantees will receive the $500 grants.

TreePhilly has given out over 11,200 free yard trees since 2012.

Applications for Spring 2015 Community Yard Tree Giveaway Grants are due Friday, February 13. More information and applications are available at  http://treephilly.org/programs-2/giveaway-grants/

Image via Tree Philly