tree city USA sign

Leadership in Action

Commitment requires accountability. We’ve crafted our four core standards to be inclusive of all sizes of communities while ensuring consistency across all our partners. 

Build Your Team

Tree City USA partners will delegate tree care to a combination of professional foresters or arborists, city departments, and citizen-led tree boards. This official designation ensures accountability, consistency, and clarity in tree maintenance decisions on city-owned property.

Set Your Standards

A public tree care ordinance creates consistent guidelines around planting, maintaining, and removing trees in public spaces. This official policy creates visibility to your efforts and transparency for citizens. These ordinances should be flexible and evolving, accounting for long-term needs and changing landscapes.

Establish a Dedicated Forestry Budget

Trees aren’t an expense, they’re an investment in the health, comfort, and viability of a community. That’s why Tree City USA partners allocate a $2 per capita minimum budget towards community forestry, helping to cover expenses around planting and maintaining green spaces.

Celebrate Arbor Day

Party like it’s 1872! That’s when communities across the country began celebrating Arbor Day, and our Tree Cities take part with everything from official proclamations to week-long celebrations. These events can help bring visibility and credit to tree management efforts and can be used to honor dedicated volunteers or civil servants.