In October 2019, Stage 1 of City of Darwin’s 4,000 Tree Planting Project started in the suburb of Anula. Lord Mayor Kon Vatskalis planted the first tree of the four-stage project, which is expected to be completed by mid-2020.

The project focuses on planting trees in suburban areas of Darwin. This includes 903 new trees in parks and greenbelts across Anula, Malak and Wulagi – three suburbs hit particularly hard by Cyclone Marcus

“Our focus is on replacing the thousands of trees lost during Cyclone Marcus to create a city that is cool, green and liveable,” said Lord Mayor Kon Vatskalis. “A lot of work has been completed in the city centre and we are now shifting our attention to the suburbs.”

“We are committed to achieving a more robust and resilient urban forest across Darwin – and the $5.8M allocated to beautification and tree planting in the 2019/20 budget will see us achieve this,” he said.

Since January 2019, a significant number of trees has already been planted. The number is expected to grow to 8,000 by the end of December. “This is a wonderful achievement by our team – and, more importantly, a terrific outcome for our community,” said Lord Mayor Vatskalis.

In terms of the type of trees planted, Jamie Lewis, Senior Coordinator Parks and Reserves, said Darwin had learnt many lessons from Cyclone Marcus. “Thousands of trees were lost during Cyclone Marcus and it is important that we promote diversity,” he said.

“We will be planting trees of varying age, characteristics and size, with a mix of Australian and Northern Territory natives and tropical exotic species, to create a robust urban forest.”

“A major focus is putting the right tree in the right place with the right soil and the right watering system,” Jamie added.

The 4,000 Tree Planting Project is part of the City of Darwin’s $53M commitment to completing major landscaping and greening projects in 2019/20. Stage 1 includes 8885m of irrigation and 1806 drip emitters. Stages 2, 3 and 4 commence in January 2020, with planting across all Darwin suburbs.