Five tree-planting projects will receive a combined $60,000 in grants as part of the Tree for Every Delawarean Initiative, the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control announced Tuesday.

The project works with conservation partners, including the Delaware Forest Service, to support planting efforts throughout the state, with the goal of planting 1 million trees by 2030.

Over 72,000 trees to date have been sown with funds allocated through the initiative, and 120,000 have been planted since January 2020 with combined monies from other sources.
The five programs awarded this week will add almost 8,000 trees this fall and next spring.

The chosen projects were selected from among 13 applications, which combined for over $250,000 in requests.

They include:

• Delaware State Parks ($10,000) for plantings at Brandywine Creek and Delaware Seashore state parks.
• Delaware Botanic Gardens at Pepper Creek, Dagsboro ($17,500).
• The Nature Conservancy ($10,000) for planting at the Bullseye-Ferry Landing Preserve, near Millsboro.
• Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve ($5,000) for planting at Blackbird Landing, Townsend.
• Siegel Jewish Community Center Delaware, Wilmington ($17,500).

Additional funding opportunities, as well as a list of nurseries that carry native trees, tips on tree care and a tree tracker, can be found here. Residents are encouraged to add newly planted trees into the tracker to help the initiative reach its million-tree goal.