For the 42nd consecutive year, the City of Avondale Estates has been named a Tree City USA by the Arbor Day Foundation. The City also received its sixteenth Tree City USA Growth Award for its commitment to effective urban forest management. There are 133 Tree Cities in Georgia and more than 3,500 in the country. Avondale Estates is one of the three oldest tree cities in the state.

The Tree City USA program, administered by the Arbor Day Foundation in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service and the National Association of State Foresters, provides the framework for community forestry management for cities across America that meet specific requirements. The city achieved Tree City USA recognition by meeting the program’s four requirements: a tree board or department, a tree-care ordinance, an annual community forestry budget of at least $2 per capita and an Arbor Day observance and proclamation.

The Growth Award is granted to Tree City USA communities actively engaged in enhancing tree care and community involvement throughout the year. This year, the city qualified by adding Roots Down as a regenerative landscape consultant to assist with hands-on training for the City’s greenspace team and invasive removal. Additionally, the City commissioned a study to monitor trends in the tree canopy and worked with an arborist to treat trees deemed in fair or poor condition. The Georgia Forestry Commission defines cities that receive this award as going "...above and beyond the requirements for urban forestry programs."

To celebrate Georgia’s Arbor Day on February 20, the community is invited to join city staff and the Avondale Estates Garden Club as they plant an American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana) at Lanier Gardens at 2 p.m.

The American hornbeam is native to Georgia and often called musclewood or ironwood. It is an excellent, low-maintenance understory tree for local landscapes, offering striking fall color (yellow, orange, scarlet) and unique smooth, gray, fluted bark. It thrives in partial shade to full sun, stabilizes soil with a robust root system, and provides essential wildlife food for birds and mammals. The American hornbeam is an approved tree on the City’s tree ordinance.

Winter is the perfect time to plant a tree in the yard – consider adding a tree from the city’s tree list to the city's tree canopy. Trees are assets to a community when properly planted and maintained. They help to improve the visual appeal of a neighborhood, increase property values, reduce home cooling costs, remove air pollutants and provide wildlife habitat, among many other benefits.