Hannibal Tree Board, volunteers plant 93 trees on South Main

HANNIBAL, Mo.— South Main in Hannibal now has 93 freshly planted trees thanks to the Hannibal Tree Board and community volunteers.

The group gathered Wednesday morning on a grassy area at the end of South Main leading to the river. The area is a piece of buy-out land bought by the city of Hannibal from FEMA.

Kristy Trevathan, president of the Hannibal Tree Board, said the area once was populated with homes and businesses before flooding overtook it.

“The city owns it and you can’t build on it, so what better thing to do with it than plant trees?” Trevathan said. 

Trevathan said the result would be 93 trees planted, including about 13 button bushes, a native shrub that likes wet feed. All the newly planted trees can handle flooding that may occur.

“Since it floods down here, all of these are bottom-land varieties,” Trevathan said.

The trees came from Forest ReLeaf, a nonprofit nursery in St. Louis that gives trees to people who promise to plant them on public property and take care of them.

Two men from the Hannibal Tree Board picked up the trees Monday morning, dug the holes on Tuesday and helped plant them on Wednesday.

“The community is all involved and on-board. Many hands make light work,” she said, then looked up at the gray sky. “I don’t think we will have to water.”

Trevathan also pointed to a more developed neighboring field they call “The Grove.” She said the tree board planted 70 bulb cypresses two years ago to commemorate tree board member Ed Tamerius, a Missouri Conservation Forester for 35 years before retiring. 

Local journalist Danny Henley will be recognized with a tree planting at 1:30 p.m. April 28 in Central Park.