The Edmonton Federation of Community Leagues’ (EFCL) Green Leagues Program has partnered with The Long Tree Society to offer long-lived trees to Community Leagues across Edmonton.
Long Trees for Community Leagues
The EFCL, the Long Tree Society, and the City of Edmonton co-created the following process document.
Consider this embedded document and the resources below as living documents, which will be updated as established processes change and become more refined.
Step 1 – Pass A Board Motion
Your League Board agrees to establish a Mini Long Tree Nursery (25.5’ x 25.5’) within the boundary of their community building or within a community garden.
A Long Tree Nursery is a simple raised bed made from a single eight-foot-long, 2 x 8’ board cut into two-foot lengths, assembled into a square, and filled with approximately two cubic feet of soil. The LongTree Society will provide detailed plans and support.
Step 2 – Identify A Tree Steward
The League will select a LongTree Steward to care for the seedlings, document their progress, tend a community of support, and pass information and responsibilities to the succeeding board and tree steward.
Step 3 – Choose a Nursery Location
A Long Tree nursery must be located within the League-licensed boundaries of the Community League.
A Mini LongTree Nursery can be established within this boundary and treated the same way as a flower or shrub bed, which falls under the responsibility of the League to maintain. This will be discussed with the League’s City Liaison to ensure that the League will maintain the Mini LongTree Nursery.
A Long Tree Nurseries is considered a Shrub Bed under the landscaping maintenance agreement section (5.1) of the EFCL League and the City of Edmonton’s Tripartite Agreement.
Alberta One Call / Click Before You Dig
While Mini LongTree nurseries don’t require digging, they should be positioned at least 3 m from existing utilities. In the event that utility lines need to be accessed, it’s best to locate the nursery where it won’t be disturbed.
Contact Utility Safety before you choose a nursery location.
Step 4 – Plan A Community Event
The community will protect and steward your Long Trees for generations. For this reason, we encourage you to host an event or celebration to welcome the planting of your Long Trees.
What kind of community gathering would you like to have with the planting of your Long Trees? What are your future hopes for the tree and your community? How could the event be documented for future generations? What artifacts could the community create?
P0st a notice in the community newsletter or on social media one month—two weeks in advance. Continue to promote the event and keep the community informed.
Newsletter – Community Invitation Template
Step 5 – Build a Long Tree Nursery
The Tree Steward and League Volunteers will construct and prepare a mini nursery bed with the support and detailed step-by-step instructions provided by the LongTree Society.
Nursery Construction Expenses ($50-$75)
The Long Tree Nursery has been designed to keep costs as low as possible while successfully growing trees. Nursery beds are made from a single board, minimal hardware, and soil. However, the league is responsible for these costs. The Long Tree Society will provide seeds and small trees for free.
- Lumber $25, Hardware $10, Soil & Mulch $25, Seeds & Seedlings $0
- Plaque – Your community may order a plaque to convey the significance of the LongTree Nursery. No project proposal is required as long as plaques are attached to the nursery bed.
If a League wishes to install multiple Nursery beds, this would become a Tree Garden, and the league would need to start by submitting a Project Proposal. No project proposal would be required for a single nursery.
Step 6 – Plant Your Long Trees
Up to 50 Bristlecone Pine (Pinus aristata) seeds or seedlings will be planted in the mini nursery. Pinus aristata is a slow-growing, high-alpine tree with the potential to live thousands of years.
Step 7 – Distribute Private Trees (5-10 Years)
Seedlings can be shared with community members once they reach 6 inches in height in approximately five to ten years.
Step 8 – Transplant Public Trees
One tree will be kept in the nursery, where it may live out its life or be relocated to nearby League-licensed land once mature enough to meet the City of Edmonton’s landscaping requirements. This tree is referred to as The League Tree.
City Planted Trees
The City of Edmonton requires that coniferous trees reach a height of 2.5 m before being planted in their long-term location. For the slow-growing Bristlecone Pine, this will take several years to decades before it can be relocated to City-owned land.
Trees must pass a formal inspection by a City of Edmonton Urban Forester prior to being transplanted.
Tree Requirements:
- Trees must have good form, with good branch and root structure.
- Trees must be in good health with vigorous growth and free of pests and disease.
- Coniferous trees must be over 2.5 m tall, and deciduous trees must have a minimum of 5 cm diameter at breast height (DBH).
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