Chestermere families celebrated the birth of children during the annual Birth Forest planting event on Sept. 20.
Every year, the Streetscapes Committee and the City of Chestermere plant trees to recognize children born into Chestermere families.
“The event was a success, it ran smoothly and everyone seemed to enjoy being a part of the planting process for their child’s tree,” the City of Chestermere’s Parks Department said.
“The birth forest planting is an important event in Chestermere because it gives families a connection to the city they call home, while honouring their child’s birth with a tree that they can visit and watch grow for many years to come,” the Parks Department said.
This year, 14 families planted trees including Navigator Pear, Ohio Buckeye, Hot Wings Maple, Mary Liss Pincherry, Princess Kay Plum, and Columnar Spruce.
“For the birth forest trees, we like to choose a variety of species for an array of flowers, and fruits to attract different pollinators and birds. They tend to be more of a columnar, upright form to ensure they don’t overcrowd each other while they grow,” the Parks Department said.
The forest was planted at the west end of the canal, as there is a lot of open space that allows for the city to continue planting forest beds.
For more information, and to view a complete list of previous birth forest locations, visit the City of Chestermere’s website at https://www.chestermere.ca/198/Birth-Forest.
*A correction was made on Oct. 3 to attribute the City of Chestermere’s Parks Department.*
