Working with shovels Thursday morning to dig a hole to plant a tree near the corner of South River and West Market streets in Wilkes-Barre are horticulture students from the Wilkes-Barre Area Career & Technology Center, from left: Macey Durofchalk, 17; Callum George, 17; Julia Brandenberg, 15, and Cassie Gagner, 16. Fellow student Daniel Kernan, 18, is holding the tree.
Mary Therese Biebel | Times Leader
Horticulture students help with DCP planting project
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Lex Santana, wearing the bright orange shirt that identifies him as Diamond City Partnership Ambassador, holds a young tree steady as the horticulture students from the Wilkes-Barre Area Career & Technical Center cover its roots with dirt.
“I’m like the strongest one here,” 17-year-old Macey Durofchalk said with a laugh Thursday morning as a group of horticulture students from the Wilkes-Barre Area Career & Technical Center dug a hole in preparation for planting a tree.
The students with the shovels did seem to be working hard — and fast.
“We’ve only been here an hour, and we’ve already got seven planted,” said Penn State urban forester Vinnie Cotrone, sounding pleased.
Thursday’s planting project brought 10 new shade trees to River Street in downtown Wilkes-Barre, funded by a Bare Root Tree Grant from TreePennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Urban and Community Forestry Council.
And it was great opportunity for the students, instructor George Albright said.
“Twenty years from now, I hope these trees will still be here and they’ll be able to tell their kids, ‘Hey, I planted that when I was in high school.’ “
The seven London Plane trees and three Northern Red Oak trees will add to the downtown Wilkes-Barre’s “curb appeal,” said Larry Newman, executive director of the Diamond City Partnership.
“They improve air quality, curb pollution, prevent runoff,” Durofchalk said, barely taking a break from shoveling.
“We’ve been paving over everything for so many years,” Albright said. “We really need to re-beautify the area.”
His students learn about more than planting saplings, Albright said, explaining that ornamental design work and how to propagate plants is also part of their curriculum.
“Our local garden centers are always looking for help,” he added, so horticulture students should have no trouble finding jobs.
The Diamond City Partnership was in charge of Thursday’s planting, with help from the City of Wilkes-Barre’s Department of Public Works, the CTC students and the Penn State Cooperative Extension.
“This is the third consecutive year that Downtown Wilkes-Barre will benefit from the Bare Root Tree Grant program,” Newman said. “With this year’s new plantings, (the Diamond City Partnership has) planted a total of 40 new shade trees along Downtown’s streets since 2020.”