The urban forest is an important part of the City’s landscape. It’s made up of all the trees on public and private land in Boston, along with the City’s shrubs, grasses, ground cover, soil, and waterways.

Emerald Ash Borer is in Boston. Learn how the City of Boston is protecting our ash trees and what you can do to help.

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Trees add to the well-being of our communities by:

The Parks Department handles public shade trees. We prune trees and take care of disease control, removals, and repairs. We work on trees throughout Boston’s 22 neighborhoods in the fall and spring.

We plant new trees based on resident requests. You can do your part by mulching and watering your street tree, and reporting any issues to the Park Line at 617-635-7275.

We welcome the help of residents and community groups to care for Boston's street trees. You should give a new street tree 20 gallons of water once a week, or run a low-pressure hose at the base of the tree for 20 minutes. A tree needs about 10 gallons of water per inch of trunk diameter. Boston's new street trees are typically two inches in thickness.

During really hot weather, a tree will need 30 gallons of water each week in two separate waterings: 15 gallons one day and 15 gallons a few days later.

Tips for pouring the water:

You can add a three-inch layer of loose, coarse mulch at least three inches from the tree trunk. However, mulching the wrong way can lead to several tree problems:

Please read “Mulch Out, Not Up” for more information.

The first signs of wilting leaves appear in the afternoon, when the weather is hottest and driest, and may disappear at night. Wilting will happen to some plants with enough moisture on hot, dry days. So, wait until the morning before watering.

Leaves changing from green to red and yellow can show a lack of water.

Weeding removes competition for nutrients and allows trees to better survive in a tough urban setting. Removing weeds also makes the tree look better and removes ground clutter. Please also remove any trash or animal waste from around trees.

Planting small annuals, perennials, and bulbs can actually help trees, but please don’t plant any species that will grow too large. Also, never add more than two inches of soil to the pit. Adding too much soil around the tree can actually suffocate the roots.

Never plant ivy, vines, woody shrubs, or evergreens. These can interfere with the proper growth and health of street trees. If you have any questions about what you can plant, please call 617-635-7275.

The Parks Department arborists are always on the lookout for invasive species, the most recent being the Emerald Ash Borer first spotted in Massachusetts in 2012.  For more information on this forest pest, please go to these pages hosted by the MA Department of Conservation and Recreation and UMass Amherst: