Comox Valley Nature wants to know 'what's up with trees?'
That's the idea behind this year's Tree of the Year event. For 2025, the group is taking a break from the very popular nomination process to celebrate the work done thus far, and to take a deeper dive into the world of trees, their importance to the ecosystem, gardens, local parks and urban forests.
"Over the past seven years, Comox Valley Nature (CVN) has hosted very successful Trees of the Year events, asking residents of the Valley to nominate a special tree," a release from the group says. "Over 120 notable trees were nominated, and their unique stories, photographs and locations can be viewed online."
This year, the idea is to celebrate those notable trees. CVN is producing a brochure describing the history of past Trees of the Year events, and will be honouring these 10 most significant trees by placing QR codes by each tree.
As part of TOTY 2025, they will also be offering a series of guided workshops and walks to explore and learn more about the trees in the community, including the benefits, history and care of the trees in our gardens, public spaces, parks and urban forests.
The first Spring workshop led by members of Comox Valley Nature will be held on March 8, in Seal Bay Nature Park. 鈥淔inding the Mother Tree鈥� features the Western White Pine and explores the concept of the Mother Tree through a guided walk of discovery. Participants will learn about the forest environment, the evolution of maturing second and third growth forests and the ecological role of the Western White Pine.
The second workshop 鈥淒on鈥檛 Fear your Trees鈥� is focused on learning more about the biomechanics of trees. Why are some trees more prone to storm damage than others? What makes a tree move in the wind? This workshop is scheduled for May 3.
The June workshop is all about growing and 鈥淕etting to the Roots of the Matter.鈥� It will look at how roots work, and what they do.
"We will dig up some small roots and look at root plates of trees to understand this vital but often forgotten part of a tree," the release from CVN says.
That workshop is scheduled for June 7.
Updates on the location, date and time of each workshop will be on the CVN website and social media pages. Limited to a maximum of 15, prior registration required via the CVN website Events Listing calendar.
Depending on public interest, more workshops and guided walks may be offered in the autumn. Those interested can check back on the TOTY webpages and The Events Calendar to stay up to date on the activities.
