Our Plant a Tree program will take place in Georgia on February 17, 2024 and in Tennessee on April 20, 2024. Our goal is to distribute 20,000 trees, so participants can plant the trees in their yard and improve our environment and communities.

This is a great community service project opportunity for churches, scout troops, and other organizations, and individuals. For businesses this can be a great way to attract new customers on a Saturday morning. There are two ways to participate as a volunteer.

​1. Pickup Location Leaders: Your organization or business can be a Pickup Location Leader and Host a pickup site either at your location, or a nearby park or public space you have reserved.  

2. Volunteers: You or your group may volunteer to help at a Firestone Complete Auto Care location near you. We will be publishing a list of sites in GA and TN soon.      

NOTE: IF YOU ARE AN INDIVIDUAL LOOKING FOR TREES TO PLANT IN YOUR YARD, WE WILL BE SENDING INFORMATION ABOUT ORDERING TREES SOON - PLEASE SIGN UP FOR OUR EMAIL LIST HERE TO GET UPDATES. 

Here's a quick overview of the the program:  

• From Dec - Feb (GA) and Feb - April (TN), participants will sign up on our website to receive one or more trees when they make a donation. These Tree Planting participants choose a location where they will pick their trees from 9am-12pm on Feb 17 in GA and April 20 in TN.  
• For Pickup Location Leaders who are hosting a pickup site: We work with partners like you who are willing to receive and distribute trees to the Tree Planting participants. You will not collect any money. You'll need to be available to receive the trees one or two days before the event. On event day, you'll get the right trees to the right Tree Planting participants using a list we provide.
• For Individual or Groups Volunteering at Firestone Complete Auto Care sites, you will help their busy staff get the right tree species to Tree Planting participants.   
• To thank your for your participation we will give you or your organization free trees!
• This recap features some of our past Pick Up Location Leaders for Plant a Tree for Tennessee.     

​If you or your organization is willing to be a Pick Up Location Leader and host a pickup site, following are the requirements, please read carefully before you sign up. If you are volunteering at a Firestone Complete Auto Care location, these are NOT requirements, but you are welcome to help with some of these responsibilities. Your only requirement is to show up on the day of the event.  We may also offer training sessions specifically for Pick Up Location Leaders and for Volunteers who plan to work at Firestone Complete Auto Care locations.  
     

• You'll help promote the event in your local community in advance. Examples: distributing and posting flyers, sharing the event on social media, contacting local news media. (Green Interchange will be helping by providing flyers and press releases you can customize, sending press releases, and running ads on social media.)
• You may need to be available a few days before the event to receive a delivery of trees. You may receive as many as 600 bare root tree seedlings. They will come in bags and do not take much space - if storage is a concern let us know.     
• You’ll store the trees in a cool, dry, shaded location until the event. This could be a garage, out-building or other appropriate location not subject to extreme heat and you may need to add water to the bags when you receive them.
• Your pick-up location must be located outdoors in a public area such as an office, retail building, park office, church, community center or other easy-to-find central locations where participants can easily find their trees and everyone feels safe.
• Be set up and ready to distribute seedlings by 8:30am or 30 minutes in advance. We recommend having one leader and at least 2 assistants.
• Each year a few people miss the pickup window due to scheduling changes, family emergencies, and human error. If you are willing to help us connect trees to people after the event, it is appreciated - but not required.
• If an extraordinary event beyond our control occurs, including but not limited to fire, flood, hurricane, earthquake, lightning, explosion, strikes, lockouts, slowdowns, shortage of energy supplies, pandemics, war, riots, and acts of governmental action prohibiting or impeding any party from performing its respective obligations for this event, we will do our best to deliver your trees during the agreed-upon day and time but may need to delay tree delivery.  In the unlikely event that we need to change the date, we will announce it as soon as possible. 

​Supplies needed day of event:

• Downloadable signs will be emailed to you prior to the event. You will need to print them and hang the signs in a visible area to help participants find you.
• Print out distribution list (provided by us). You will distribute seedlings according to the list provided. We will provide you with the Tree Planting participant's name, email, phone number, and trees ordered.
• You are welcome to set up a tent with tables and chairs but that is not needed. This event will take place rain or shine. In the unanticipated event of extreme weather the event may be postponed until the following week.
• OPTIONAL: Some Pickup Sites stage their trees by putting the roots in a 5-gallon pail of water. Others "pre-pack" the trees immediately before pickup with a moist paper towel covering the tree roots. Participants will be asked to bring their own bags, but you might want to have extras on hand.  

Ready to sign up? Register here.

If you have any questions in the meantime, please contact us at the email below.

If you are a Pickup Location leader hosting a pickup site, you will be required to provide all information related to your pick-up location. The name, contact information and location you provide will be published to the public on our website along with the pickup date and time.

We hope you will join us for this historic effort as we reforest Tennessee and improve the environment one native tree at a time. ​This work also supports our work planting trees near Roadways, Waterways and in other public and private spaces. 

DAY OF EVENT INFO: 
What if the weather is bad?  
This event will happen rain or shine. Only if there is extreme weather such as torrential rain, severe lightening/thunderstorms, tornadoes, etc, will we consider rescheduling and will try to reach out to you via email.  

Where is my pickup location?   
The pickup location for Murfreesboro on 4/29 is the Kroger on Lascassas. We will be in the parking lot from 11am-1pm. Click here to find the exact pickup location addresses for 4/22. There have been a few location changes as follows: If you reserved trees for pickup in Hermitage you will  be picking up in Nashville at Canvast Supply on Trinity Lane. If your pickup location was Mount Juliet you will now be picking up in Lebanon at Don Fox Park, and if your pickup location was Memphis on Madison Ave. your pickup location is now the Firestone on Austin Peay Hwy in Memphis. We apologize for any inconvenience. ALSO if you are picking up at Shelby Park in Nashville please note there is a Marathon and there may be some road closures. See map map below for the best route if you are not coming from East Nashville.            

What if I can't pickup on Saturday 4/22 or 4/29 ?  
Please ask someone to pick up your trees on your behalf if you can't make it. This is a one-day event run by volunteers. We do not have a physical location or another way to get trees to you. If you don't pick them up on April 23, you may not get your trees. Scroll down for more information on what to do if you miss your pickup.    

What if my trees aren't at the site?    
Make sure you go to the right pickup location.Pickup sites are run by volunteers so please contact us if there are any issues. 

Bring your own bag to keep tree roots moist until planted!
Pickup sites will NOT have bags for your trees. Bring one plastic bag to cover the roots for each different species you ordered. The plastic bags used at a grocery store checkout or in the produce section are the perfect size. You can fit roots for up to 10 trees in one plastic bag. If you do not go straight home after pickup - bring some paper towels or newspaper, moisten with water, and cover the roots before putting in the bag. If the roots dry out, the trees will not survive. Please mark each bag with the species name so you can tell them apart when you go to plant them!      ​

Get trees to plant in your yard. Planting trees is one of the most important things you can do to make a difference for our air, land, water, and communities. Learn how you can reserve trees for pickup on 4/2 in Georgia (or on 4/22 in Tennessee) and help us to plant 12,000 trees for Earth Month! 

Get trees to plant in your yard. Planting trees is one of the most important things you can do to make a difference for our air, land, water, and communities. Learn how you can reserve trees for pickup on 4/22 in Tennessee (or on 4/1 in Georgia) and help us to plant 12,000 trees for Earth Month! 

On January 28 from 9am-1pm volunteers will plant trees at Donelson Christian Academy (DCA) in Nashville to improve our waterways. And on Feb 8 from 12pm-4pm Green Interchange volunteers will plant trees at the intersection of I-840 and Central Pike in Lebanon to improve our roadways.

​Planting trees near roadways and waterways is an important part of our mission and offers important benefits for healthier communities, economies, and quality of life.  Learn more here.   

Click the links below to register for either or both events. Volunteering is always free. If you choose to donate you are supporting important work planting trees across Tennessee. The events will take place rain or shine. Please register in advance so we can send any updates or contact you as needed.  

​The DCA program in Nashville is made possible by support from: 
Cumberland River Compact | Root Nashville

​The I-840 program in Lebanon is made possible by support from: 
The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee | Bridgestone Americas | TN Department of Agriculture Forestry

On October 8, 2022 Green Interchange volunteers planted 50 trees along upper section of Garrison Creek in Murfreesboro - a tributary of Bushman Creek. This work is helping restore the stream and bring improvements for people, land, water, and wildlife.     

Trees help stabilize stream banks and prevent erosion, they help mitigate stormwater damage by helping water infiltrate into the soil, trees shade a stream and keep it cooler which helps fish and aquatic habitat, trees also provide habitat for birds and other wildlife, they also absorb nutrients and pollutants to help clean the water.      

The goal is to restore the upper section of this heavily impacted stream by planting along approx. 1,781 feet of the creek bank with about 300 native trees and 1,000 live stakes (willow or other cuttings that will take root). We’ll also maintain about 100 trees in the lower section of Garrison Creek with mulch, pruning, and replacement as needed.  

Work on Garrison Creek was originally started on the lower section of Garrison Creek in 2012: Because of a lack of stream-like characteristics, Garrison Creek was managed as a ditch for years. The stream is listed on TN's polluted streams list (i.e. 303 d list). Partners include  1 Mississippi/The Mississippi River Network, Tennessee Environmental Council,  Water Walkers, McFadden Community Center, Middle Tennessee Electric, Rutherford County and the Murfreesboro Stormwater and Street Departments.

Over the years, the partnership has targeted issues facing the lower section of the creek through: tree plantings, education and outreach, algae pulls, and clean-ups. Garrison Creek is slowly transitioning to a healthy stream with diverse habitat. The videos below show the impressive progress since 2012. You can also see how much fun this work can be. Kids from McFadden Community Center filled out surveys and some of their answers can be found below. 

We're excited about the opportunity to achieve similar results on the UPPER portion of the stream. If you would like to join us at a future tree planting event, please contact us.     

Did you know that water from Garrison Creek flows into the Mississippi River?  Nearly all the streams and rivers in Tennessee ultimately flow into the Mississippi River - it truly connects us. River Citizens are people who want to clean up and protect our country's greatest River and the surrounding watershed. The program is free to join at 1 Mississippi.