New Jersey Tree Foundation beautifies Camden

by Marc Hummel

Originally appeared in The Gleaner, the school newspaper of Rutgers University — Camden.

If a city notorious for crime and abandonment had a chance to simultaneously clean the air, improve the look and feel of the neighborhood, and unite its citizens for a common cause, shouldn't it take that opportunity?

The good news: Camden's chance is here, and it's an easier goal to achieve than you might think. The New Jersey Tree Foundation (NJTF), a state-wide non-profit organization, enables the people of Camden to plant trees in neighborhoods across the city. The NJTF was founded in 1998, and has been planting in Camden since 2002. In just eight years, the organization estimates that 3,835 trees have been planted with the help of 125 community groups and 7,300 volunteers.

"Planting trees helps people take pride in their community. It starts with a tree, then you're cleaning up the street, and the street next to it, kind of like a ripple effect. It was awesome to see the kids out here working," said Josh Lantz, a volunteer from the Maryland-based chapter of AmeriCorps. It was a sunny Saturday afternoon in late April, and Josh had just helped about 75 other volunteers plant twenty trees along Garden Street, in East Camden.

Many citizens were most excited about the beautification aspect of the new trees. "I think we have a pretty decent neighborhood in the first place, the trees will just add to the beauty," said Kathy Carr.

Ms. Yarbough, accompanied by her daughter Nicole and her son Lance, became interested in the NJTF when she walked past a tree planting event on a block around the corner from hers. She told me that "the planting is going to beautify the neighborhood... we've been trying to get the trees for a couple of years now."

Other volunteers were particularly interested in the ecological benefits of the trees. Eric Teel, a volunteer with the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, said "coming from a scientific background, I can see how [in Camden] with the abundance of cars and pollutants, and the lack of trees, you can increase the air quality by planting trees. Studies have shown that asthma and other respiratory diseases are clustered in urban areas. Things like planting trees and improving air quality improves the health and beauty of the community. "There's an ecological component and a beautification aspect. Kids love trees, and adults like the serenity, and the shade they provide. People who are ecologically conscious see the benefits from that perspective."

The planting started with the unloading of the trees at eight in the morning, a process overseen by the organization's Program Coordinator, Jess Franzini. United Water Camden donates the equiptment and operator to dig the holes and drop off the trees and a bag of mulch. NJTF carefully analyzes each planting location to be sure the right tree will be planted in the right place. Telephone wires, underground utilities, sidewalks, and existing structures are always taken into account. Residents are then given a list of trees to choose from – the two types of trees that were planted on Garden Street, the Persian Ironwood and Okame Cherry, were carefully selected to be compatible with the neighborhood.

The volunteers take the process from there. The holes are deepened, and the heavy trees are carefully lowered into position with the help of as many hands as can fit around the base. The trees are covered back over with dirt, and mulch on top of that. Overall, Ms. Franzini told me, the trees planted by NJTF have a 95% survival rate, and many of the ones who don't make it are by the fault of man, not nature.

The New Jersey Tree Foundation's plantings are truly a community effort – from the first neighbor who makes a request for trees, to local businesses like licorice-flavoring company MAFCO, who donates a bag of mulch made from manufacturing byproducts for every tree NJTF plants in Camden.

Kathy Carr remarked, "the neighborhood – we've all come together for this planting, some of these people I didn't even know, and we were able to connect."

For a list of upcoming plantings and information on other ways to get involved, visit newjerseytreefoundation.org.