Marina Tree and Garden City Tree Campaign

How it all started...

In 1994 the City of Marina Tree Committee began planting areas in the city of Marina as part of a city wide beautification campaign. Many volunteers from our community have participated in planting trees over the years. The Marina Tree and Garden Club adopted and contined planting the greenbelt in 2006. Below is an accounting of the Tree Committee and the Club efforts in establishing and caring for trees in the City of Marina.

All trees, seedlings, seeds, planting materials, and drip systems are provided for from club funds collected from the Marina Tree and Garden Club Garden Tour tickets sales and raffle. All planning, installation, maintenance and care comes from volunteers willing to get dirty for a few hours a year. Check the calendar for current dates, locations and planting times.

There are about 60 percolation ponds in the city of Marina that handle storm rain runoff. Many of these sites consist of a chain link fence and a weedy lot with a sandy pit in the center. With the blessing of the city, the club has been planting native buckeyes and coastal oak acorns with the goal of creating more tree areas within the city. Some of these lots are marked for future development by the city.

Today, many of the small seedlings have grown into trees and the club continues to plant more public areas. Unfortunately, not every acorn, seedling or tree planted makes it through the first few critical years. There have challenges with drip systems, mishaps with weedwhackers and misinformed tree trimmers, winter freezes, vandalism, and attrition. For these reasons, our tree planting campaign will continue in the city of Marina.

Locations of tree planting events:

• 1993
  Marina Del Mar Elementary School
  3066 Lake Drive
  30 cypresses planted.

• 1994
  Drew Street
  30 cypresses planted. Many were inexplicably cut down by the city a few years back.

• 1994 to 2005
  Del Monte Avenue median
  80 trees planted of various species. Plaques installed along bike path south of Reservation Road to indicate tree species and growth habits. Several of the New Zealand Christmas died in the 2007 freeze and have not been replaced.

• 1996 to 2011
  Cal Trans Property along HWY 1
  Continuing yearly planting and maintenance of HWY 1 corridor along Marina to create cypress green belt first begun by Tree Committee and later adopted by the club.

• 1995
  Olsen Elementary School
  261 Beach Street - front and back of school.
  12 cypresses planted.

• 1996
  Beach Road Landmark Eucalyptus Status
  City Tree Committee facilitates process for approval for landmark status. Signs erected designating status. Trees visible along Beach Road from Windy Hill Park.

• 1998
  Clark Street
  6 cypresses planted

• 1998
  Vince di Maggio Park
  6 Memorial olive trees planted

• 1998
  City Percolation Pond Beautification Campaign
  Native oaks and buckeye seeds planted throughout city percolation ponds. Approximately 60 perc ponds seeded.

• 1998
  Monterey Salinas Transit Center
  Cypress tree planted - sometimes decorated around Christmas season along Reservation Road

• 1999
  Locke Paddon Monterey Regional County Park
  Sequoia planted.

• 2001
  Veterans Transition Center
  Hayes Circle - approximately 200 cypress seedlings planted throughout housing area.

• 2001
  Marina Vista Elementary School
  390 Carmel Avenue
  30 trees planted (various species) around playground perimeter. Some of those trees were mistakenly cut down in 2008 and have not been replaced.

• 2005
  Del Monte Avenue Railroad right of way along bike path. Approximately 40 cypresses planted.

• 2010
  Vince di Maggio Park
  Del Monte Avenue
  Memorial olive trees planted

• 2010
  City Percolation Pond Beautification Campaign
  Native oaks and buckeye seeds planted throughout city percolation ponds. Approximately 30 perc ponds re-seeded over earlier plantings.

• 2011
  City Percolation Pond Beautification Campaign
  Native oaks and buckeye seeds planted throughout city percolation ponds. Approximately 20 perc ponds re-seeded over earlier plantings.

• 2013
  Goodwill Food Garden
  Monterey cypress seedlings planted in a row along Imjin Blvd by club and community members, HOPE services, and CSUMB volunteers in the fall. Planting extends the cypress row planted by CHOMP Wellness Center. Trees were donated from Goodwille Garden to the Veterans Affairs services next door and planted to the end of the block.

• 2017
  Hillcrest Native Garden
  The club secured a grant from the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District to create a native plant garden next to city council chambers on Hillcrest Avenue. Past council member Ken Gray is honored at this site with a memorial oak tree and bench, funded by friends, family and the club. More information about this project can be found on this page.

graphics: Juli Hofmann