Sustainability and Trees

A well-managed urban forest in LA County can reduce stress, clean the air, provide healthier soils, support biodiversity, offer shade from heat, and enhance overall community well-being. PLACE is supporting the Chief Sustainability Office in creating an Community Forest Management Plan for Los Angeles County. This plan will prioritize planting in low-canopy communities, focusing on resilient trees, native vegetation, and biodiversity suitable for the climate. It aims to conserve mature trees and manage resources effectively to ensure trees thrive in our urban environment.

As part of the CFMP, the County collected or developed fact sheets and other tree resources, including information on Residential Tree Planting Guidelines (PDF), Establishment Care (PDF), Tree Care for Birds and Wildlife, Watering Guidelines (PDF), Recommended Fruit Trees (PDF), and more on the CFMP Resources page.

Los Angeles County Public Works' Parkway Trees Program provides information about how to care for trees in a drought (PDF).

Their Brochures and Flyers provide additional information about parkway trees in unincorporated areas, parkway trees and concrete, how to care for your parkway tree, how to get a free tree planted in front of your house, tree roots and sewer laterals, and how to care for our urban forest.

See also the wet and dry season Watering Guidelines fact sheet developed by the County as part of the Community Forest Management Plan.

Los Angeles County Public Works' Parkway Trees Program provides a list of Frequently Asked Questions about trees, including information about tree trimming, what you're allowed to plant, sidewalk damage, tree removal, and more.

Their Brochures and Flyers provide additional information about parkway trees in unincorporated areas, parkway trees and concrete, how to care for your parkway tree, how to get a free tree planted in front of your house, tree roots and sewer laterals, how to care for our urban forest, and how to care for trees in a drought.

Additionally, as part of the Community Forest Management Plan, the County collected or developed fact sheets and other tree resources, including information on Residential Tree Planting Guidelines (PDF), Establishment Care (PDF), Tree Care for Birds and Wildlife, Watering Guidelines (PDF), Recommended Fruit Trees (PDF), and more on the CFMP Resources page.

Trees cool and beautify our neighborhoods, improve our physical and mental health, save energy, and help clean our water and air. Residents in unincorporated LA County can request a free street tree from Public Works. Visit the Public Works Parkway Trees website to request yours. If you live in the City of Los Angeles, you can request free trees from City Plants for your home or neighborhood.

In 2020, PLACE received a grant from the County’s Quality and Productivity Commission for the "Optimizing Planning and Management of Los Angeles County’s Urban Forest" project. Using data-driven approaches and machine learning, this project aimed to count, identify, and monitor every tree in the region efficiently, starting with East Los Angeles, Altadena, and Marina del Rey. Testing an automated approach is helping the County better understand how to manage the urban forest in a more cost-effective way. Learn more at https://trees-lacounty.hub.arcgis.com/.

Urban tree planting is crucial for climate resilience, but it faces challenges, especially in places that receive relatively little rain, like Los Angeles County. In unincorporated communities, residents who want a street tree have to water it themselves for 3-5 years. Historically, only 10% of residents agree to this, and just half of planted trees survive. To address this challenge, PLACE tree-planting initiatives involve community partnerships that provide job and life skills training to young adults. A key finding from evaluation of these initiatives is that 46% of residents have accepted free trees following outreach and education from community youth, a great improvement over the 10% in previous County tree planting projects.

Valinda, Bassett, Walnut Park, East Los Angeles
In 2017, the First Supervisorial District sponsored "Life is Better with Trees,” planting and watering nearly 2,000 trees in Bassett, Valinda, and West Puente Valley. This was a partnership with Los Angeles County Public Works, the San Gabriel Valley Conservation Corps and other community partners as a project of the Healthy Design Workgroup’s Tree Committee. Read our brief on Life is Better with Trees.

California State University, Northridge consulted with PLACE on "A novel resident outreach program improves street tree planting outcomes in Los Angeles," an evaluation of Life is Better With Trees. The evaluation identifies multiple strategies to inform future tree planting projects, increase street tree acceptance and establishment survival, and support community co-benefits.

Westmont and West Athens
In 2019, the Second Supervisorial District sponsored "Trees Make Life Better," planting and watering 650 trees in front of homes and at community planting events in Westmont and West Athens. This was a partnership with Los Angeles County Public Works, the Los Angeles Conservation Corps, From Lot to Spot, and the Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust.