Request a Free Tree

Apply For a Free Tree

Open space areas along your home’s sidewalks can be a great place to grow a tree! The City of Escondido offers a Free Tree Program. Homeowners can receive a free tree if you agree to:

  • Have a tree planted along the sidewalk
  • Commit to watering your new tree, twice a week for 3 years. 

Why 3 years?

Newly planted trees need time to adjust to their new homes. Watering helps their roots "establish" to the soil and climate.

How does the Free Tree Program Work?

  • Site Visit: An inspector will visit your home to confirm you live within the City limits of Escondido and have an appropriate planting space to accommodate a tree next to the sidewalk. 
  • Tree Selection Program: During the Site Visit, the inspector will recommend the best tree given planting space. The City has an approved tree list which can guide you in selecting (up to three) tree species for your home. 
  • Tree Planting: The City will come back to plant the tree for free!
  • Tree Watering: You help the tree grow by watering for the first 3 years and as needed in drought or extreme heat events. 
  • On-Going Tree Maintenance: Once your tree matures and grows large, the City will maintain the tree.

* On average, a tree consumes about 15 gallons of water per week ( 780 gallons per year). Escondido households in 2021 paid $10 for 1,000 gallons of water. Watering your tree could cost you less than $10 per year!

Please note:

Trees will only be planted in residential areas and within the City right-of-way.

This program does not plant palm trees.

Top Six Tree Selections

Little Gem Magnolia

Little Gem Magnolia

A dwarf southern magnolia with smaller dark green foliage and a very compact narrow form. The large, glossy, evergreen leaves have rusty-brown undersides. Very attractive, large, white, fragrant blooms. A naturally small tree or large shrub perfect for small gardens. Evergreen.

Learn more about the Little Gem Magnolia

Hong Kong Orchid

Hong Kong Orchid

Considered the most beautiful tree available, with exceptionally long-blooming, flamboyant, deep rose-red, orchid-shaped flowers that have a touch of white. The sterile flowers produce no seedpods. Develops as a tree with a rounded crown in warmer winter regions, more shrub-like in cooler winter regions. Partly deciduous.

Learn more about the Hong Kong Orchid

Golden Rain Tree

Golden Rain Tree

Excellent shade tree, known for its neat habit and well-behaved root system. The medium-sized, open-branched form is ideal for parkways and patios. Blue-green foliage has nice fall colors. Long panicles of fragrant flowers are followed by attractive, papery, lantern-like seed pods. A very effective and versatile landscape specimen. Deciduous.

Learn more about the Golden Rain Tree

Eastern Redbud

Eastern Redbud

Beautiful landscape tree valued for its brilliant scarlet-purple color to new foliage, maturing to maroon. Rosy-pink flowers on bare branches bridge the gap between winter and spring! Deciduous.

Learn more about the Eastern Redbud

Crape Myrtle

Crape Myrtle

An attractive ornamental tree with smooth, peeling bark. Showy, ruffled, summer flowers are followed by vibrant orange-red fall foliage. An excellent choice as a specimen plant, or en masse for an explosion of color in the landscape and year-round interest. Deciduous.

Learn more about the Crape Myrtle

Bronze Loquat

Bronze Loquat

Large corrugated leaves are good for tropical effects. White, fragrant flowers are followed by 1 1/2-inch edible fruits with a texture similar to that of a pear. Use as a specimen, prune to a canopy with age. Suited to containers in colder climates. Evergreen.

Learn more about the Bronze Loquat

Approved Street Tree List

All Trees on this list are subject to approval by the City of Escondido and availability at local nurseries. Small to medium (20 to 40 feet) trees that are recommended for planting along parkways, in medians, or near hardscape

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