The mission of Heartland Tree Alliance is to engage people of the Greater Kansas City region to take action and advocate for a healthy community forest.
Heartland Tree Alliance educates people about all the critically important benefits created by urban trees, why these trees need extra care, and the proper ways to give them that care. We also organize planting events, pruning events and tree care workdays so people can get involved. Since 2005, HTA volunteers have donated over 13,000 hours of time! The efforts put forth from these volunteers has enabled HTA to plant 17,874 trees, prune 3,264, and maintain an additional 2,527 trees by mulching or removing tree stakes.
Learn more about how you can get involved with Heartland Tree Alliance.
Shape the future of our region's urban tree canopy by making a donation to the Heartland Tree Alliance's Tree Fund.
The Heartland Tree Alliance's Tree Fund supports tree planting events and education programs across the Kansas City region.
learn more
1,081
volunteer hours worked
1,645
trees planted
27
citizens trained as TreeKeepers & OrchardKeepers
175
youth educated about trees
Calling all tree lovers! Volunteer with Bridging The Gap’s Heartland Tree Alliance (HTA) program! At our workdays, we explain why it’s important to maintain and increase our urban tree canopy, then we split into small groups to prune, plant or mulch small trees. We work throughout the metropolitan area, on both sides of the state line.
Heartland Tree Alliance can provide a speaker for your next meeting! Our presentations are designed for neighborhood associations, businesses, and other groups in the Kansas City region.
request a speaker
NC and NE District Community Forester
Kansas Forest Service
Horticulture and Forestry Supervisor
City of Leawood Kansas
Horticulture Specialist
University of Missouri Extension
Community Forester
Missouri Department of Conservation
Belton Tree Board Member/Volunteer
Belton Missouri
Park Maintenance Crew Leader
City of Lenexa Kansas
Horticulture Extension Agent
Kansas State Extension Services
Small Business Owner
Kansas City Missouri
Community Forester
Missouri Department of Conservation
Transmission and Distribution Vegetation Manager
Kansas City Power & Light
Associate Vice President, Landscape Architect
Gould Evans Architects
Program Manager, ISA Certified Arborist, Municipal Specialist SO-5327AM
Program Coordinator
The field of arboriculture includes many career pathways, from nursery management to urban forestry to tree climbing. Heartland Tree Alliance is fortunate to have many friends (“Tree People”) in the field. We recently chatted with one of our friends, Bridget Tolle, Urban Forestry Specialist for Prairie Village, Kansas about her experiences and insight in the … Continued
Trees are beneficial in so many ways, including improving human health. Trees can filter the air we breathe, reduce heat-related illness, provide us with nutritious food, speed up the recovery process, improve immune systems and encourage us to go outside and engage in recreational activities or socialize with neighbors. In addition to all of those … Continued
There are a variety of tools that can be used for pruning, from hand pruners to chainsaws. We’ll share which tools Heartland Tree Alliance uses while pruning young trees in Kansas City. A word to the wise: Pruning is intentional wounding for a specific purpose. Improper pruning can severely damage, stress or even kill trees. … Continued
According to Kansas City area arborists Last week, the Heartland Tree Alliance team attended the 66th annual Shade Tree Conference hosted by the Kansas Arborists Association. This event brings together tree care professionals, arborists, foresters and friends from Kansas and surrounding states to catch up and learn. We asked some Kansas Certified Arborists why they … Continued
Our Heartland Tree Alliance program is partnering with UMKC to hire an AmeriCorps Social Justice and Community Engagement VISTA this fall. Could it be you? This position will serve an important role in setting HTA’s focus areas for future tree planting efforts. Interested applicants should submit a cover letter, resume, and degree verification to shannon.r.wheeler@umkc.edu. Additional … Continued
Sign up to receive exclusive Bridging the Gap news and updates.
