Why Goshen is the Greenest • The Good of Goshen

Like the Lorax, Goshen Loves the Trees

Goshen’s urban forest around the Elkhart County Courthouse

“I am the Lorax, I speak for the trees. I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues.” – Dr. Seuss, The Lorax

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With the city’s long-term goal to grow its urban tree canopy to provide nearly half again as much shade tree coverage by 2045, Goshen – like the Lorax – is a true advocate for green and growing things. 

The Goshen Parks and Recreation Department has two programs to promote the health of existing trees and the proliferation of more. The city now covers half the cost of tree trimming and even removal when the tree is determined to be in the public right-of-way by the Environmental Resilience Department. Goshen will also share the cost of planting a new tree, paying half for a new, two-inch diameter, 10- to 15-foot tree when it is located in the right of way.

And local nonprofit Trees for Goshen picks up where the city leaves off. The charity supports residents by scouting promising locations for trees in their yards on the front, side, and back of their property and providing them for planting. For more information, contact Trees for Goshen by email.

Written and edited by Wendy Wilson

Original publish date April 2022