Do you remember the old John Denver "plant a tree for tomorrow" campaign? If not, here's a refresher.

I don't know why that song got so buried in my head. Every time I hear someone mention that they are planning on planting some trees, I hear John's weak-ish voice warbling the lyrics, "plant a tree for your tomorrow... it's your tree that clears the air."

Arbor Day is over, but it's still a great idea to plant trees. Trees provide shade, gobble up CO2 and provide habitat for birds and other little creatures. Montana State Extension Office horticulturist  Cheryl Moore-Gough writes,

Late summer and fall is a great time to take advantage of the local nursery's end of season sales and plant trees and shrubs. With the heat of summer over, plant water needs are less and roots make good growth in the warm soil. Just be sure to plant early enough that plants get a head start before the ground freezes.

Summer isn't the ideal time for tree planting, but with proper watering you should have fairly decent success in getting your little trees to grow. A large variety of trees can do fairly well in the Billings area. The City of Billings Parks and Recreation Department offers this PDF of over 70 species of trees that can thrive in Billings.

The Yellowstone Conservation District is having their annual free tree giveaway this Saturday, June 27th at Yellowstone Cellars and Winery at 1335 Holiday Circle from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. They will be offering 400 trees for free, limit one per household (due to overwhelming response) and social distancing will be in place. They are offering a limited number of each of these varieties of free trees: hardy apricot, green ash, Siouxland cottonwood, redosier dogwood, silver maple, and golden willow.

For more information contact the Yellowstone Conservation District. H/T to the Billings Gazette.

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