With spring’s warmer weather, we can finally turn our minds to the outdoors and to our gardens and parks. It’s time to roll up your sleeves, put on your gardening gloves and get ready for some spring cleaning and planting!

There are two ways to get outside and help keep Ward 25 green this spring.

The first is to join me for my annual Environment Day on Saturday, May 31, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at York Mills Collegiate! It’s a great opportunity to get rid of unwanted household items dredged up during your spring clean. You can bring everything from computer equipment and electronics to fluorescent bulbs for recycling and disposal as well as small household items, sporting goods and books for donation.

The second help keep Ward 25 green is to help rebuild the city’s tree canopy by planting a new tree on your property!

In February, I moderated an excellent panel discussion on how to improve and protect our tree canopy, organized by For Our Grandchildren. It was an inspiring evening, and LEAF had some particularly pragmatic ideas, including its backyard tree planting program.

Through the backyard tree planting program, you can work with an arborist to select a native species tree and have it planted in your backyard. For more information, call LEAF at 416-413-9244. You can also request a free tree for you front yard through 311.

To put a new spin on a well-worn phrase, the best time to plant a tree is 30 years ago and the second best time is this spring!