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.

Bryce and Alicia fill a wheelbarrow with mulch.

Loni rakes some compost around a tree.

Jackie fills out a treegram.

Volunteers of all ages came to help.

Andy and Bert deal with the shrinking pile of compost.

Stacy rakes out compost.

A treegram hangs from one of the branches.

Bryce fills a wheelbarrow with mulch.

The line of new trees next to N. Maple.

Jackie shovels some compost.

Jigmed wheels some mulch to where it’s needed.

Tim fills out a treegram.

Andy of Spokane Urban Forestry gives some tips and instructions.

Bryce digs in to the pile of compost.

Loni and Karl tend to a tree.

The tree-planting crew.

Angel and Stacy catch up.

Tim and Bryce fill a wheelbarrow with mulch.

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

Melissa scoops mulch into the wheelbarrow.

Jim signs the MoU.

Jim and Tim talk trees.

A treegram hangs from one of the branches.

Jim and his young assistant

Linda spreads some compost around a tree.

Loni is having a lot of fun spreading compost.

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

Karl hauls some compost.

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.