Fruit trees - including one that produces a fruit some say is like a strawberry - are among the species that will be up available in this month's fall tree sale.
The City of New Westminster's upcoming tree sale features a variety of trees that residents can purchase for $10 each. Residents are permitted to purchase up to two trees for their property.
“For the fall tree sale, the city will be offering 150 trees for purchase,” said Erika Mashig, the city’s manager of parks and open space planning, design and construction. “The selection of trees includes fruiting trees, flowering trees and trees appropriate for planting in pots on balconies and patios.”
Seven types of trees are available at the sale: European Strawberry tree, Fireglow Maple, Golden Variegated Dogwood, Stellar Pink Dogwood, Mount Aso pussy willow, Honeycrisp apple and Royal Star magnolia. The European Strawberry tree (a flowering evergreen that produces a fruit with some have compared to strawberries - thus, its name) and Fireglow Maple are suitable for balcony spaces.
In past fall and spring tree sales, residents have called parks and recreation to purchase trees, but the upcoming sale is heading online. Residents will be required to set up an account to take part in the sale, and the city recommends people set up their accounts before the sale.
Mashig said the parks and recreation department is piloting online-ordering-only for the fall tree sale to help address the feedback from the spring 2022 sale.
In February, the city received an “unprecedented” response to the 2022 spring tree sale. Trees sold out within two hours
“Although city staff did their best to answer calls in the order they were received, we know that many residents were frustrated that they were not able to reach a staff person to put in their order,” said the city in an email to residents after the sale. “City staff are actively working on improving our ordering system for future tree sales including the launch of an online ordering system for the next tree sale in October 2022.”
The upcoming sale begins at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 11. Trees will be available for pickup on Saturday, Oct. 29 between 9 and 11 a.m. at the Queensborough Community Centre. Here are the steps for taking part in this fall’s tree sale:
* Set up an online account and save your credit card information in advance. (If you’ve already have an account for program registration, you have an account. If you have trouble setting up an account, call 604-527-4567 to get some help.)
* Review the tree options and select your two favourites. Residents are advised to choose trees based on their height and spread measurements.
* Login on Oct. 11 at 8:30 a.m. (After logging in, if you don’t see the product page, go to My Profile > Products, to find the list of trees.)
According to the city, people can order by phone, but an online registration account is necessary. Setting up an account in advance will increase your chances of purchasing a tree.
Growing the tree canopy
In 2019, city council endorsed a tree planting master plan that proposes to plant about 11,800 trees by 2035 and a 10-year plan for where those trees will go. The plan aims to plant 3,330 new trees on private land and 8,500 new trees on public land, including new street trees (6,300) and new trees on city-owned park and civic lands (2,200).
The tree planting master plan is a key action in the city’s urban forest management strategy, which was developed in 2016. The strategy provides a framework for how the city is going to grow the citywide urban forest canopy cover from 18 per cent to 27 per cent, which is the average for a North American city.
According to the city, the fall tree sale is one of the ways residents can help New Westminster reach its goal of a 27 per cent canopy coverage in New Westminster by 2030.
Information about the available species and instructions for setting up an online account and ordering trees can be found at www.newwestcity.ca/treesale.
