Roughly one dozen volunteers turned out today for the tree-planting event on N. Maple street.

Representatives from the Office of Neighborhood Services and Spokane Urban Forestry were there to lend a hand, and Nancy MacKerrow of The Susie Forest attended with cookies and “treegrams” to allow the planters’ wishes to flourish along with the trees.

Tim fills out a treegram.

Karl hauls some compost.

Loni and Karl tend to a tree.

Stacy rakes out compost.

The tree-planting crew.

Andy of Spokane Urban Forestry gives some tips and instructions.

Jim, Bert and Tim figure out who’s next on shovel duty.

A treegram hangs from one of the branches.

Jim signs the MoU.

Loni is having a lot of fun spreading compost.

Jigmed wheels some mulch to where it’s needed.

Jim and Tim talk trees.

Jackie fills out a treegram.

Bryce and Alicia fill a wheelbarrow with mulch.

Jackie shovels some compost.

Loni rakes some compost around a tree.

Bryce digs in to the pile of compost.

A treegram hangs from one of the branches.

Tim and Bryce fill a wheelbarrow with mulch.

Angel of Spokane Urban Forestry and Nancy MacKerrow of the Susie Forest.

Linda spreads some compost around a tree.

The line of new trees next to N. Maple.

Angel and Stacy catch up.

Andy and Bert deal with the shrinking pile of compost.

Volunteers of all ages came to help.

Melissa scoops mulch into the wheelbarrow.

Bryce fills a wheelbarrow with mulch.

Jim and his young assistant

This marks the first important step in dealing with this stretch of property on N. Maple. The Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood Council hopes to work with the city to install stormwater improvements, sidewalks and more plantings in the relatively near future.