Let's Plant ABQ - Lets Plant ABQ

Building Our
Urban canopy

Building Albuquerque’s urban canopy will take everyone in our city coming together to create a greener, cooler community for us all. Just a single tree can make a big difference. The benefits of a strong urban canopy include:

Improved air and water quality
Increased property values
Reduced energy use at homes and businesses
Reduced storm water runoff
Improved quality of life for citizens
Increased economic development opportunities

Let’s plant!

The Benefits of Albuquerque’s Trees

The value of trees to an urban community is vast, in economic, social and environmental benefits. Albuquerque’s existing urban canopy provides great benefits to our community. Growing our canopy will continue to multiply these benefits, creating a greener, healthier community for everyone.

0

tons/year of
pollution removal
($1.1 million/year)

0

tons/year of carbon sequestration
($692 thousand/year)

0 K

tons/year of
carbon storage
($16.1 million/year)

$ 0 K

per year in avoided carbon emissions

Source: https://www.emnrd.nm.gov/sfd/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/ABQFactSheet_growinghealthiercommunities.pdf

THE PLEDGE TO PLANT

Join others who have made the pledge to plant a tree in the Albuquerque area this year. Fill out the form below and take the pledge. We’ll email you information on how to receive a 25% rebate off the purchase of your new tree.

#LetsPlantABQ

When you plant your tree, share photo on social channels with the hashtags #LetsPlantABQ and @LetsPlantABQ for the chance to be featured on this page.

The Water Authority Treebate

The Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Authority’s Treebate program helps offset the cost of planting and maintaining trees.

When you buy a new tree you can receive 25% back off the purchase of your new tree. To help its customers narrow down their purchasing decisions, the Water Authority has assembled a list of 20 trees that are proven to thrive in our area, are commonly available for purchase, fit a variety of situations, and provide numerous environmental benefits. Over 160 qualifying trees are listed in the Water Authority’s Xeriscaping Guide. To see the full list, click See Eligible Trees below.

TOP CLIMATE-READY TREES FOR ABQ

Not sure about which tree is right for your space?
Talk to a tree expert with the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Authority.
AskAnExpert@abcwua.org

TREE CARE LEGEND

MESQUITE (HONEY & SCREWBEAN)

MESQUITE (HONEY & SCREWBEAN)
The various species of mesquite are trees synonymous with the desert Southwest. All are slow to leaf out in the spring, but they make up for their tardiness with fragrant yellow flowers.

Care and Maintenance
Avoid overwatering and poorly draining soil. Mesquite trees can get boring insects when stressed. Deep tap root; does not transplant well.
full sun

OAK (ESCARPMENT LIVE & CHINQUAPIN

OAK (ESCARPMENT LIVE & CHINQUAPIN)
Depending on water and soil, this evergreen oak ranges from a large shrub to a large tree with a wide-spreading crown. Deep green glossy leaves provide heavy shade and mature trees have massive trunks with thick limbs and rough, black bark.

Care and Maintenance
When drought stressed, this tree is susceptible to oak wilt and rot – be sure it gets watered deeply. Best in alkaline, well-drained soils, but tolerant of clay. Don’t be alarmed when the leaves turn yellow and drop during spring – this is expected.
full sun

CHINESE PISTACHE

CHINESE PISTACHE
Round, open crown, with excellent fall color. Females produce clusters of small green berries that turn bright red and age to dark bluish-purple. Outstanding fall foliage in shades of scarlet, crimson and orange.

Care and Maintenance
Tolerant of virtually all soil conditions except soggy clay. Young trees are ungainly and may require some pruning to form good scaffold structure and head clearance. Susceptible to cotton root rot.
full sun

NETLEAF HACKBERRY

NETLEAF HACKBERRY
A young Netleaf Hackberry passes through a rather ungainly adolescence, but with a little pruning, it emerges as a sculptural small shade tree that provides habitat for butterflies and songbirds as well as cooling patios and decks on a modest water budget.

Care and Maintenance
Deep roots allow its use close to walls and paving without risk. Susceptible to leaf galls, twiggy deadwood, witches broom. Requires pruning when young to ensure good form.
full sun

KENTUCKY COFFEE TREE

KENTUCKY COFFEE TREE
Kentucky Coffee Tree is a very large, tough shade tree that has become extremely popular in recent years. Parkways, front yards, and backyards are great locations for this unique and newly popular tree.

Care and Maintenance
Kentucky Coffee Tree should be grown in full sunlight. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist locations, and should do just fine under average home landscape conditions. It is considered to be drought-tolerant.

CHASTE TREE

CHASTE TREE
Multi-branched, spreading large shrub or small tree that features distinctive dark green palmate leaves. Its low open form can be pruned to grow more treelike to create a small and lovely shade tree. In mid-summer a profusion of 7-inch-long blue flower spikes creates a sweet aroma that attracts bumblebees.

Care and Maintenance
Does best in hot areas. This tree has brittle wood and suckers.
full sun

CEDAR (ATLAS AND DEODAR)

CEDAR (ATLAS AND DEODAR)
Layered conical branching with distinctive blue-green foliage. This tree offers dense shade and provides a unique form and texture for the landscape.

Care and Maintenance
Young trees are susceptible to freeze damage.
full sun

ELM (ACCOLADE AND FRONTIER)

ELM (ACCOLADE AND FRONTIER)
A smaller elm tree with beautiful reddish-purple fall color. It is upright, with pyramidal growth. Leaves are dark green and smooth; it is extremely hardy. The best part is it produces no seeds!

Care and Maintenance
Fast-growing and resistant to many typical elm diseases and insect problems. A perfect replacement for Albuquerque's common Siberian elm tree!
full sun

APRICOT

APRICOT
Genus includes many of the commonly grown stone fruits in home gardens. These include peach, apricot, almond, cherry, nectarine and plum.

Care and Maintenance
Susceptible to scale, aphids, twig and trunk borers. Crown gall, bacterial canker, bacterial leaf spot, and nematodes can also be issues. Frequent bird and insect damage to fruit. Fruiting can be unreliable due to late frosts.
full sun

CRAPE MYRTLE

CRAPE MYRTLE
This shrub or small tree is usually multi-stemmed with attractive tan and cream mottled bark and upright growth. Clusters of showy flowers bloom in the summer on branch tips of the current year's growth.

Care and Maintenance
Can suffer from marginal leaf burn due to heat or salt damage, as well as powdery mildew. Avoid spray irrigation.
full sun

RUSSIAN HAWTHORN

RUSSIAN HAWTHORN
Compact shrub with glossy, leathery leaves covered with pink or white flowers in the spring. Panicles of dark-blue fruit follow flowering.

Care and Maintenance
Aphids occasional problem. Leaf spot also occasional problem.
full sun

OKLAHOMA REDBUD

OKLAHOMA REDBUD
Beautiful, showy pink blossoms line naked branches before leaves emerge in spring. Dark green wavy leaves and purplish seed pods prolong color display into summer. Edible flowers.

Care and Maintenance
Leaves may be damaged by leaf cutter bees. Suckers.
full sun

NEW MEXICO PRIVET

NEW MEXICO PRIVET
Multi-trunked, upright and vase-shaped, maturing into a rounded shrub with pale gray bark on sharply branching limbs. Leaves are small and bright green. Early spring flowering clusters of tiny yellow-green, fragrant blossoms. Female plants produce numerous small fleshy blue-black fruit ripening in late summer.

Care and Maintenance
Can be pruned into small tree after main trunks are developed. Leaf cutting bees. Drought deciduous. Slightly messy fruit.
full sun

AFGHAN PINE

AFGHAN PINE
Pine trees provide visual interest in a landscape and much-needed greenery in the coldest, most barren months. Afghan Pine is one of the best desert pines. Its evergreen leaves (needles) grow in pairs and reach 5-6 inches long. This relatively fast-growing tree is great for windbreaks and for creating a “visual screen” between properties.

Care and Maintenance
Cannot tolerate temperatures below 0 degrees F. Thrives in heat, wind and poor soil. It is relatively drought tolerant.
full sun

DESERT WILLOW

DESERT WILLOW
A sturdy, heat-loving tree that’s native to warm deserts. Compact and shrubby, its leaves are long and thin and its profusion of pink trumpet-shaped flowers puts on quite a show. Long, pencil-like pods give the tree year-round character. Fast growing as a young tree, its growth slows as it matures.

Care and Maintenance
Grows well in New Mexico’s lowlands, but may not be suited to elevations above 5,500 or where its cold hardiness is challenged.
full sun

THE LET’S PLANT ALBUQUERQUE alliance

Building an urban canopy takes the efforts of everyone. The Let’s Plant Albuquerque Alliance is dedicated to planting trees, building community involvement, and making Albuquerque a cooler, green city.

100K TREES PLANTED BY 2030

TREES PLANTED BY 2030

WITH YOUR HELP, WE CAN RESTORE ALBUQUERQUE'S URBAN CANOPY AND CREATE A COOLER, MORE SUSTAINABLE FUTURE FOR OUR CITY.

PLANT A TREE.
GET A REBATE.