Free Trees for Ratepayers
Gympie Regional Council’s Free Trees for Ratepayers program forms part of council’s Environment Strategy addressing the key response area of ‘Natural ecosystems are conserved and enhanced and our built environment embraces biodiversity, sustainability and heritage’.
The program supports the Gympie community’s ability to contribute to our regional environment strategy via the provision of two (2) free tube stock native trees/plants to each ratepayer/landowner per rate notice (4 available per year).
- Planting native plants of various types and forms in your garden, backyard or property will help you to provide habitat for native fauna and enhance the scenic amenity and value of your land and our region.
- Local native plant species will be better adapted to local soils and environmental conditions, such as weather, and will provide suitable habitat and food for local fauna.
- ‘Tube stock’ (40/50mm pot size) plants have a greater success of survival and adaption to their planted situation, if cared for well during the initial support period. If you would prefer more advanced plants, this is outside the program and you will need to pay for these seperately.
Your free plants can be selected from a list of Council’s Priority Plant Species(PDF, 80KB) or other native species as available from one of our local specialist community suppliers.
Program and Planting Guide
Council has developed a new Program and Planting Guide, in partnership with our local community nurseries, to help residents choose the right species for their property. Collect a hard copy of this guide from your chosen partnering nursery when you collect your free plants. Copies are also available from all Council offices.
Free Tree Program and Planting Guide(PDF, 3MB)
How to claim your free trees/plants
- Go to your chosen Local Specialist Supplier
- Select 2 suitable native ground cover, shrub, tree or climber tube stock for your property
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Bring the following to make your claim:
- Rates Notice, OR
- Claim Slip (shown below) from the back of the Rate Category leaflet (delivered with your Rates Notice), with your ‘Assessment Number’ (found on your Rates Notice) filled in.
Local Specialist Community Suppliers
Don't have a need for your free tree allocation on your property?
- Speak to your chosen local specialist suppliers to find out what Schools, Community or Sporting Groups they may have registered (approved by Council) to receive your donated Free Trees.
- Suppliers can ‘bank’ donated tree allocations from individual ratepayers to approved (by Council) groups, for them to collect and plant on an approved (by Council) site, at the end of the rateable period (biannually). A designated cap for each group is assigned. Click on the below tab for more information about Council's Tree Banking Program.
School, community or sporting groups can enhance your site with native plants/trees too!
Tree Banking is a sub-program designed to allow small community/sporting groups or educational organisations to collect voluntarily donated un-needed allocations from ratepayers, for planting in their group’s outdoor setting.
Free-Trees-Group-Banking-Application-Form.pdf(PDF, 182KB)
Once approved, your group can start to receive ‘banked’ free trees from generous Gympie ratepayers. A cap per rateable period applies.
Alternatively, if you have a project that requires more trees to be planted, during a different time period or includes other activities aligned with Council’s Environment Strategy, check out Council’s Micro Environment Grant here - Grants and Funding – Gympie Regional Council
Links to information on plant selection, planting and care of your new native plants
Tips for selecting the right native plants for your garden
Watch the video below from Gardening Australia.