For the last three years work has been going on to assess, maintain and plan for the future of Houlton’s street trees.
This project initially began with Angie Wotton, district manager of the Southern Aroostook Soil and Water Conservation District, after conversations with other concerned citizens. The district received a Project Canopy grant in 2020 from the Maine Forest Service. The funds made possible the project “Taking Stock: Planning Houlton’s Tree Growth,” which focused on surveying many of Houlton’s street trees.
Surveys were conducted by 24 trained volunteers, who documented tree data such as condition and age of trees. The conservation district developed a written plan from the surveyed data and presented it to the town in 2021, but wasn’t able to present it to the town council formally until this past April. A second Project Canopy grant will plant 15 trees on three different streets in Houlton in September.
Earlier this summer in a letter to the Houlton Pioneer Times, Wotton expressed concern for the recent loss of an alarming number of Houlton’s street trees. She asked residents to call her if they were interested in advocating for our trees by forming a tree committee.
The Houlton Canopy Crew has about a dozen members. The group has been meeting every two weeks since July and has worked maintaining Houlton’s trees and public gardens. People might notice the flower gardens downtown have fewer weeds and that the branches along the paved walkway from Market Square to the Gateway Bridge have been trimmed.
The group came across a couple of community members who were quietly weeding downtown flower beds and helping to revitalize the Union Square garden. The crew’s first new planting project was a flower bed added around the base of the beautiful new clock donated by the Odd Fellows near the library.
Collaboration with existing groups and services is a key strategy for the Canopy Crew. The group has met with Houlton’s public works director, Chris Stewart, to get his view of how his department and the Canopy Crew can coordinate efforts to maintain trees and gardens. The public works department has already joined efforts by obtaining mulch, donated by a local greenhouse, and putting it on the two Market Square gardens at the west end of the square.
They are also helping to remove noxious volunteer saplings in Riverfront Park. Some trees have to go to maintain the gardens and paths and to maintain the health of existing trees and shrubs.
The Canopy Crew has also received endorsement from the town council and will work with district forester Lauren Ouellette when professional consultation and advice on plantings and removals are needed. At their next meeting, the crew will start a long-range, proactive plan for the maintenance and future plantings of Houlton’s street trees.
For residents looking to learn about proper maintenance and pruning of their homes’ landscape trees, the SASWCD will hold a pruning class for homeowners on Sept. 28. Visit www.saswcd.org for information.
The group welcomes muscle and monetary donations. Call Angie Wotton at 254-4126 for more information and time and place of meetings.
