Gift Trees Planting Project – Mississippi

Project Description

This Gifted Tree Planting Project is in the area around De Soto National Forest, Mississippi, named for 16th-century Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto. It is one of the most important protected areas for the biological diversity of the Gulf Coast ecoregion of North America.

This planting project will help restore the once dominant longleaf pine forests which covered over 90 million acres from Virginia to Texas. This species abundance has decreased dramatically over time due to non-sustainable timber harvest and clearing of land for agriculture and development. The longleaf pine ecosystem is well known for incredible diversity of plant and animal species that it supports, many of which are endemic only to this habitat.

Your tree planting project will restore critical watersheds, address fire capacity issues, and rebuild important wildlife habitats, especially benefiting the gopher tortoise and the northern bobwhite and Bachman’s sparrow birds. As the saplings mature, the reforestation will ultimately help combat climate change and global warming.