Members of the Berlin Horticulture Advisory Committee are pictured restoring a rain garden at Burbage Park last summer.
Tara Fischer / Bayside Gazette

By Tara Fischer

Staff Writer

The Berlin Horticulture Advisory Committee announced that its “Keep Berlin Cool” initiative was selected as a grant recipient and will receive $2,980.

Last week, the group revealed via a Facebook post that its tree-planting project was chosen as a grant awardee. The funds will be dispersed by the Maryland Coastal Bays Program and are intended to “improve urban tree canopy cover and absorb stormwater runoff in town,” the post reads.

The project will include planting native trees between a mix of private residences, town-owned property, and congregations. According to horticulture committee member Victoria Spice, the initiative will likely target areas that were identified in a 2007 stormwater report conducted by the US Army Corps of Engineers.

“We want to target some of the areas that were identified in the USACE report, a stormwater report from 2007. A huge stormwater report was done in Berlin, where they identified some specific stormwater areas. So we combined that report with some of our local knowledge of areas that flood and are really trying to target those problem areas.”

Spice added that while these sites will be prioritized, the horticulture group hopes to choose various spots in town to plant native trees.

“We recognize the fact that it’s also important to have buffers and have trees and vegetation around the areas…like the headwaters of these streams and so forth,” she continued. “We’re not closed off to any specific property.”

Spice said that the group has budgeted between one and three trees for each of the 10 sites. A large part of the awarded funds will be used for the “five or seven-gallon native trees that we will be selecting for each property.”

The money will also be used to purchase shovels and supplies to support the plant materials, such as tree tubes and posts, and outreach postcards to be mailed to priority areas. Spice noted that once the trees are planted, the team also intends to create campaign signs to inform folks about the program.

Town staff will not be responsible for the work associated with the initiative. The horticulture team is leading the program, creating site plans and determining which trees will be ideal for each particular spot. The town will also not be liable for the success of the trees’ growth or their maintenance.

The horticulture team went before the Berlin Town Council in February to request authorization to apply for the MCBP grant. The governing group green-lit their request, and the application was submitted by March 7. The town was notified of the award last week.

The environmentalists emphasized the grant-funded project is essential to increasing the aid that trees will provide in Berlin.

“Trees are necessary, especially in an urban setting, for habitats for our birds and pollinators, for shade, and for stormwater runoff,” horticulture committee member Victoria Spice said at the February Berlin Mayor and Council meeting.

If property owners are interested in receiving services from the horticulture advisory group, they may complete a form at https://forms.gle/CWHou7ZLoN4re6Am9. If a property is picked, the team will select, purchase, and plant a native tree on it for free.

Site selection and planning of 10 total sites will occur this spring. The horticulture group will likely conduct the planting in the fall.

Spice said that the group would work with the homeowner to choose the type of trees. If the property owner or resident prefers a particular species or color, as long as it’s native, the planting may be tailored to that goal.

The horticulture group is excited about the positive environmental impact this project will have on the Town of Berlin.

“[Tree planting] will bring a huge value to Berlin, not only to improve urban tree canopy cover, which we know reduces the temperature, so we can make Berlin more walkable and a more pleasant place to be a resident and a visitor,” Spice said. “It’s also going to help with stormwater runoff that we really see as a problem in Berlin. And then obviously some of the other takeaways are that it will provide habitat and nesting for our birds and flowers for our pollinators.”

The grant is reimbursable. This means that project leaders can purchase the necessary materials and invoice the nonprofit for the funds immediately.

The horticulture group is planning an outreach event for Berlin residents to meet with committee members and ask questions about the Keep Berlin Cool project. When determined, the date of the outreach event will be announced on the Town of Berlin’s website and social media, as well as the Horticulture Advisory Committee’s Instagram.

“That will just be a place where folks can come and learn about the program and potentially sign up, and/or if they just want to come and chat with us about their property and pick our brains about native plants, we are just thrilled to offer that service as well,” Spice said.