Environmental
Park County Environmental Council (PCEC) is thrilled to announce that it will be planting 56 trees across Livingston next week, May 20th – 22nd from 8 am to 5 pm, culminating in the annual Arbor Day celebration and community potluck on Friday, May 22nd at 5:30 pm.
Over the past few months, more than 50 residents and organizations, including Park High School, Sleeping Giant Middle School and Winans Elementary School, have signed up to adopt, water, and care for these new trees. Volunteers are invited to help during this three-day-long event to enhance Livingston's urban forest and celebrate the numerous benefits trees bring to our community.
The Arbor Day celebration community potluck will take place at the northside soccer field southside parking lot. It will feature a planting demonstration of a large Bur Oak, a tree species native to Montana. The event is free and open to the public. Participants are encouraged to bring food items to share, dress ready to help plant a tree and get their hands dirty if the desire strikes.
The event celebrates Livingston's commitment to a greener, more resilient future—enhancing the city's beauty, providing shade, reducing stormwater runoff, supporting wildlife habitats, and mitigating the effects of the region's notorious winds. Livingston's urban forest is currently dominated by ash species that are vulnerable to the emerald ash borer—a beetle responsible for the loss of millions of ash trees nationwide. This May, Livingston Loves Trees (LLT) will have planted and monitored over 430 trees, diversifying our forest with oaks, elms, maples, lindens, honey locusts, flowering crabapples, and Japanese tree lilacs.
Residents interested in contributing to this initiative can participate by adopting a tree, volunteering for planting, health checks, and maintenance. Anyone can donate to the Tree Fund. Adoptee trees, provided free of charge, come with a commitment to care for and maintain, including weekly watering, during the first five years.
LLT has been made possible by a powerful combination of government grants, generous individual donors, a partnership with the City of Livingston and its incredible park maintenance team, and all the passionate volunteers, known as the Tree Buds.
Join us in planting today for a greener tomorrow—because Livingston truly loves trees. For more information on how to get involved, visit https://www.pcecmt.org/livingstonlovestrees or contact the Park County Environmental Council at (406) 222-0723.