About 1200 advanced trees will be planted in nature strips in City of Greater Shepparton between June and September.
The annual tree planting is part of Greater Shepparton City Council’s Urban Forest Strategy and Street Tree Renewal program.
The goal of the program is to increase green canopy cover in public urban areas to 40 per cent by 2037.
While this year 1200 trees will be planted in nature strips, 5420 have been planted in Shepparton, Mooroopna, Tatura, Dookie, Murchison, Kialla and Toolamba since the strategy was adopted in 2017.
The trees are specially grown and selected to suit the local climate.
Some are chosen specifically for planting under power lines so they do not cause maintenance issues when they are fully grown.
Council undertakes extensive monitoring of new trees for the first two years with watering and maintenance by which stage they are usually well established, however, residents are encouraged to water trees if needed, particularly in the summer months.
Council’s infrastructure director Gary Randhawa said the trees provided significant economic, social, environmental, ecological and aesthetic benefits to our communities.
“In addition the health benefits associated with making our streets a more appealing and enjoyable place to be, increasing the green canopy is one of the most cost-effective and efficient public assets for adapting urban areas to climate change,” he said.
For information on the Urban Forest Strategy visit www.greatershepparton.com.au/council/major-projects/urban-forest-strategy