What makes planting trees better? When they're free.

The City of Kansas City, Missouri is committed to planting more trees to increase the city's tree canopy, pledging $1 million to add 10,000 trees over three years.

In an extra effort to reach this goal, the City is giving away 1,000 free trees this spring. The Canopy Cover KC project is now taking reservations for up to two saplings, with six species to choose from (sorry, no Black Walnuts), including:

White Oak
Redbud
Allegheny Serviceberry
Ohio Buckeye
White Shield Osage Orange
Kentucky Coffeetree

Help make next fall even more colorful. | Photo via @kansascity

Once selected, you can pick up your new foliage at a local distribution event, unless you're one of the lucky few eligible for home drop-off.

It's the first time tree planting will occur on private property with city-funded support — an effort made possible through a partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation and Bridging the Gap, as well as measures like KC's Tree Preservation and Protection Ordinance and the Kansas City Climate Protection and Resiliency Plan.