The Virginia Department of Forestry Urban and Community Forestry program supports homeowners across the Commonwealth as they establish and maintain their trees. The benefits of trees to the environment and quality of life are clear – even yard trees contribute to human health, improved water quality, energy savings, and reducing heat.
Managing trees in the yard, and in urban and suburban environments can sometimes be overwhelming. The DOF provides professional forestry assistance to help homeowners manage their tree resources through education, advice, and connecting homeowners with appropriate resources.
- Planting trees
- Proper tree care
- Hiring a certified arborist
- Rain gardens as a stormwater management tool
Additional Resources
Image | Title | ID | Description | Content Type | View | hf:tax:document-category | hf:tax:Media |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Hardwood Planting Guide | P00137 | Brochure illustrates and explains proper planting techniques for planting bare-root hardwood seedlings. Printed copies available. | Publication | View | nurseries | publication | |
Pine Planting Guide | P00117 | Brochure illustrates and explains proper planting techniques for planting bare-root pine seedlings. Printed copies available. | Publication | View | nurseries | publication | |
Rain Gardens | P00124 | Brochure educates landowners on options available to resolve issues with excess drainage from roofs, gutters, sidewalks, and roads, eliminating soil erosion, improving the quality of water, and how to put nature to work for you. Printed copies available. | Publication | View | urban-and-community-forestry water-quality | publication | |
Rain Gardens: Technical Guide | P00127 | Technical guide provides detailed instruction for homeowners, teachers, community leaders, gardeners and landscape architects on the planning and development of rain gardens to create a landscape feature that will solve drainage problems, address erosion problems, improve water quality, create wildlife habitat and create a garden focal point. Printed copies available. | Publication | View | urban-and-community-forestry water-quality | publication | |
Seedling Price Guide | P00139 | Brochure provides a listing of seedling species available for sale at our state Nurseries and current pricing. For more detailed species information and to order online, visit our Web Store. Printed copies available. | Publication | View | nurseries | publication | |
The Woods in Your Backyard – A Practitioner’s Guide for Creating, Enhancing, and Maintaining Natural Areas | This 108-page guide, including more than 100 color photos, was developed by University of Maryland Extension, Penn State Extension and Virginia Cooperative Extension. It guides small-acreage owners through the process of implementing proper forestry and wildlife habitat improvement practices to enhance a property’s natural resources. Available for purchase. | Publication | View | forest-management urban-and-community-forestry | publication | ||
The Woods in Your Backyard Program – Resources | This resource list provides descriptions and links to a number of valuable resources available for small-acreage landowners in managing their woods. Provided by The Woods in Your Backyard Program Partnership, Virginia Department of Forestry and Virginia Cooperative Extension. | Document | View | forest-management urban-and-community-forestry | document | ||
Tree Owner’s Manual for the Northeastern and Midwestern United States | NA-FR-04-07 | Manual provides guidance about proper tree care from planting a tree to maintenance and care through the life of the tree. | Publication | View | urban-and-community-forestry | publication | |
Tree Owner’s Manual for the Northeastern and Midwestern United States | FT0218 | Manual provides guidance about proper tree care from planting a tree to maintenance and care through the life of the tree. Manual produced by USDA Forest Service, cover created by DOF. Limited printed copies available. | Publication | View | urban-and-community-forestry | publication | |
Woodland Health Assessment – Checklist and Management Actions | This assessment is part of the Woodland Health Practices Handbook: A Practitioner’s Guide to Creating, Enhancing, and Maintaining Natural Areas but also available separately to assist green industry professionals and do-it-yourselfers in assessing a variety of conditions on the site and recommending management actions. | Publication | View | forest-management urban-and-community-forestry | publication | ||
Woodland Health Practices – A Field Guide | This pocket-sized quick-reference guide assists managers in the field with implementing land-care practices. This 68-page, full-color resource is a distillation of the Woodland Health Practices Handbook: A Practitioner’s Guide to Creating, Enhancing, and Maintaining Natural Areas. Available for purchase. | Publication | View | forest-management urban-and-community-forestry | publication | ||
Woodland Health Practices Handbook – A Practitioner’s Guide for Creating, Enhancing, and Maintaining Natural Areas | This 85-page guide, including more than 60 color photos, provides an overview of land management techniques, checklist and management action tables, glossary and index. Available for purchase. | Publication | View | forest-management urban-and-community-forestry | publication | ||
Woodland Health Practices Handbook Webinar Series Recordings | A four-part webinar series covering the information in the Woodland Health Practices Handbook was held in fall 2020 and an eight-part series in spring 2021. Webinar recordings of this series is available here. | Publication | View | forest-management urban-and-community-forestry | publication |
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