Have you ever wondered what types of trees grow best in Sedona? Believe it or not, there is a bit of science involved when making that decision.
To help with this, the Sedona Parks and Recreation Department invites residents to a free workshop — Homeowners’ Tree Workshop and Firewise Education — on Saturday, Nov. 5, from 9 a.m. to noon. There, participants can learn how to properly select, plant and maintain heathy trees, while also learning ways to protect homes against wildfire.
“It’s a little out of the realm of what we normally do but this community class is offered for free and doesn’t involve a lot of staff time,” recreation coordination Ali Baxter said. “They were basically looking for a location to host the class and help with getting the word out.”
The Parks and Recreation Department, in cooperation with a certified arborist from the Arizona Community Tree Council, U.S. Forest Service and Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management will come together to host this one-time workshop.
According to their website, “ACTC and Arizona State Forestry have teamed up to bring you free workshops designed to educate your community about the proper care and planting of trees around your home and reduce the risk of property damage due to wildfires.
“We introduce home owners to care and watering techniques, pruning and right place, right tree concepts and promote a more fire-knowledgeable community. With an increase in the wildland fire risks across Arizona because of drought conditions and an increase in the wildland urban interface, now is the time to be more Firewise.”
Sedona is listed by the ACTC in the high desert region and with that comes certain trees that do better than others in this type of climate. The region is classified as being between 3,300 to 5,000 feet in elevation. It has a definite winter season — 75 to more than 100 nights below 32 degrees. Recommended types of trees include Chinese Pistache, Netleaf Hackberry Evergreen Elm or Arizona Cypress.
“We think this is a great opportunity to partner with these organizations and hope the community will take advantage of the valuable information from this workshop on tree planting and wildfire protection,” Baxter said.
The workshop will be held in the Recreation Room at Posse Grounds Park at 525 Posse Ground Road. Register online at AZTrees.org. Walk-ins are also welcome. For more information on this workshop, visit SedonaAZ.gov/Parks and navigate to the “Sports and Specialty Classes” section of the web page or email questions to Info@AZTrees.org.
