Urban Forestry

Urban Forestry

South Salt Lake works to  sustain a safe and healthy urban forest through effective management practices for the long-term livability, viability, and resilience of the city. Our staff maintains thousands of trees along streets and in parks, community centers, and other city facilities or property. A healthy urban tree canopy helps protect water and air quality for the health of our residents, and helps our environment by reducing the urban heat island effect in our community.

Urban Forestry Plan

In 2023, South Salt Lake was awarded a Community Forestry Partnership Grant (CFP) by the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire & State Lands, in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service. This three-year grant will support efforts to establish South Salt Lake’s Urban Forestry program, including creating an Urban Forestry Plan that will guide an urban forestry program dedicated to preserving, expanding, and maintaining a healthy urban forest.

Tree Inventory

In 2024, we completed a tree inventory and assessment of our city property. Here's what we found.

  • 3,347 public trees (including trees found along streets and at city parks and facilities).
  • 634 of our public trees are growing at city parks and community centers (including 257 at Fitts Park alone).
  • 118 unique species were mapped and counted (top species include: Bradford pears 15.3%; Honeylocusts 8.1%; Crabapples 6.9%)
  • 64.2% of public trees are found east of State St (neighborhoods with the most trees are: Central Park 19.8%; Granite Legacy 18.4%; Fitts Park 16.2%).
  • Our biggest tree is the Giant Sequoia at Historic Scott School (at over 60 feet tall).

Tree Care

There is cost and effort in planting trees, so make sure to do it right the first time! Watch the video below from TreeUtah for the proper steps in planting a tree. Once planted, make sure to properly water your tree to esnure it lives and thrives for decades to come. When plant a tree, don't just thinkg about the joy your tree brings you today, think about the joy it will bring for generations to come!

Plant a Tree for Free

South Salt Lake provides free trees for residents to plant on their property during the spring and fall season. The goal of this program is to focus on areas in need of growing a healthy urban tree canopy, as seen in our city's Tree Equity Score areas. Planting trees helps the city protect water and air quality for the health of our residents and the environment, and helps reduce the urban heat island effect in our community. This program is made available through grant funding from the U.S. Forest Service, and is administered through our partnership with TreeUtah.

To sign up for a free tree, click the button below to fill out our free tree form. When we have trees available, we will contact you to arrange pick up or delivery.

website signup button
website tree equity score button

Tree of the Year Award

In celebration of South Salt Lake's Tree Week, we host our annual Tree of the Year Award. See our winners below, and check back in April for information on our current year application.

  1. 1 2024 Tree of the Year Winner
  2. 2 2025 Tree of the Year Winner

Tree Species Highlights

  1. 1 Tree Species-Highlights_Pinyon
  2. 2 Tree Species-Highlights_Redbud
  3. 3 Tree Species-Highlights_Elm
  4. 4 Tree Species-Highlights_Service
  5. 5 Tree Species-Highlights_Beech