Reep Green Solutions

4️⃣- Honey Locust 🌳

Looking for a tree that allows plants to grow underneath, but with heavy clay soil conditions limiting their options, a was an ideal fit for this Kitchener homeowner!

Its little deciduous leaflets provide dappled shade, and it is overall an easy-growing and extremely hardy tree.

Fun Fact 🍃As a member of the legume family, honey locusts produce bean pods which are partially edible! Worried about thorns? We only plant thornless varieties!

If you're curious, learn more about it under "Which Trees are Available?" at reepgreen.ca/trees!

3️⃣ Paper Birch 🌳

This backyard had well-draining soil, and the homeowner wanted a tree that's visually interesting—but wouldn't grow too big. With its unique bark making it stand out from other trees, and medium size at maturity, this will be loved in its new home!

Fun fact 🍃: The bark of paper birch saplings is actually a dark, reddish-brown with white spots (lenticels). It takes at least 4 years to become white, and even longer to start peeling! (Source: University of Guelph Arboretum)

Interested in making your home more 🌧️? Request a Free Healthy Yards Consultation!

The upcoming rain is the best time to look around your yard for the perfect rain-smart projects

Some things to take notice of 🔎:
💧 Is there an area where water pools up?
💧 Curious about what's growing and which native plants/shrubs/trees would thrive?
💧 Thinking of redoing your walk/driveway to something more permeable?
💧 Have an area of lawn you want to naturalize?
💧 Could you benefit from collecting rainwater to use in your garden, lawn, car, or otherwise?

Residents in priority neighbourhoods (2nd photo) are eligible for a FREE consultation with our Healthy Yards Advisor.

🔗Book your home visit at https://bit.ly/3RznEY2
We have limited availability for the remainder of 2026!

2️⃣- Freeman Maple 🌳

This deciduous tree 🍃 is also very hardy and adaptable, like last week's evergreen. With a very sunny area in their backyard, this homeowner wanted quick shade – the perfect match for a fast-growing and sun-loving !

Fun fact 🍁: Freeman maples are a naturally-occurring hybrid between a Red x Silver maple!

We've planted 109 native, backyard trees this Spring season! Like this one, each has a unique story as we match the to the . To celebrate, we're sharing a few of our favourites!

Tune in on Sunday for the next one! Any guesses? 👇

4,342 new trees are lining Waterloo Region's roads this Spring 🌲

Check out our behind-the-scenes video and photos of the planting process, and a map of where these native trees are taking root 🌱

Bringing our total to 5,925 living trees, we're making great progress towards our goal of 9,000 trees by the end of 2026!

Here's a recap:
🌱 1,700 trees planted last Fall
🌱 4,354 trees planted this Spring
🌱 June inventory revealed just 207 trees lost since the Fall—a mortality rate of only 3.4%!
⏩ Planting 2,946 more this upcoming Fall 2026

Primarily in and , with some in , , and , these trees will green the edges of farm fields along regional and township roads!

Township of Wellesley Township of Wilmot Region of Waterloo City of Waterloo City of Kitchener City of Cambridge

Fundraiser Pickup Day 💧

More than 102 Rain Barrels are happily collecting rainwater at their new homes!

Let's do some math: 102 barrels ✖️ 220+ Litres each 🟰 22,440L of water—Equivalent to 45 THOUSAND bottles of water

Collectively, that's how much polluted we're diverting from our management system...every time it storms🌧️🎉

Instead, this precious water is feeding gardens🍅, nourishing native plants and trees🌲, and replenishing our reserves 🚰

Thank you to everyone who supported our fundraiser💚 We'll keep you updated on the W.A.L.E.S group's new and how you can get involved!

Extend-A-Family Waterloo Region

🌱We've planted 109 trees this spring 2026 through our and programs

Each tree has a unique story as we work to find the Right for the Right Place in your yard — and for you!

We're sharing some of our favourites of the season! First up:

1️⃣ White Spruce 🌲
This Kitchener homeowner chose a for their front yard. As it grows, the hardy evergreen will provide year-round privacy and thrive in tougher conditions like clay soil and road salt. It's planted in the best spot to flourish, with plenty of room for its wide base to spread!

Stay tuned for the next one! In the meantime, learn more about our various native trees
🔗https://bit.ly/4ynkozt

Prep Day at Northview Heights Lookout Park 🌳🌱

In the fall, we'll be planting a new mini-forest in !

To prepare the 100m2 site for the future 300+ native trees and shrubs, generous volunteers from the community, Sustainable Waterloo Region, and Reep's Board came out to lend a hand!

This stage adds needed organic material to improve and help the plants thrive. Following the , we:
🌳 Trimmed the grass and removed weeds
🌳 Laid down carboard to level the area and help decompose
🌳 Layered on soil with compost
🌳 Topped it with bark mulch

We'll come back in a couple of months once it has all started to decompose, to start the planting.

Stay tuned for updates and our call if you'd like to learn and help out!

Big thanks to Green Communities Canada and Trees for Life Canada for funding this project!

Limited spots remaining this year for our Community Canopy Program 🌳🌲

You could receive FREE native tree planting for your yard if you're in an eligible or Neighbourhood!

Our full-service program provides:
🌳 An initial consultation at your property
🌲 Native Evergreen or Deciduous tree(s)
🌳 Delivery, planting, mulch, and a care guide
🌲 Warranty
🌳 And a follow-up visit if needed!

🔗Book your consultation today at https://bit.ly/4bElP2H

This program is run in partnership with the City of Cambridge, the City of Kitchener and Trees for Life Canada to help increase tree canopy coverage in areas with the greatest need.

On June 24th, Our Director of Program Management Kelven Goodridge, Board Members Mimi Mahmud and Sharmalene Mendis-Millard, and ClimateActionWRPlan Manager Kyra Chisholm-Askin were invited to attend a convening of the Climate & Equity Lab hosted at Wilfrid Laurier University.

does not affect everyone equally, and the communities hit hardest are those already living with the least capacity to recover — a reality that is worsening in Canadian cities. The Lab works alongside these communities to understand, advocate for, and build and .

As community and cross-sector partners, we participated in the day's sessions to:
📗 Learn about the various local initiatives supported through The Lab
💡 Reflect, ideate, and collaborate on the vision for Community-Led Resilience Hubs
🤝 Explore the importance of connecting local needs with systems-level efforts across Canada
- and more.

The Lab formed in 2023 as a collaboration between the Gore Mutual Foundation, Co-operators, Peter Gilgan Family Foundation, Social Innovation Canada, and York University’s Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change.

We're thankful to see, and be part of, the meaningful work and impact coming from cross-sector collaboration — academia, private industry, government, and community organizations — towards the united goal of equitably supporting our communities in the realities of a changing climate.