Good news is taking root in Mattapan! Mass Audubon’s Boston Nature Center and Wildlife Sanctuary has been selected as a 2026 TD Tree Days grant recipient, and volunteers rolled up their sleeves to plant 105 new trees on the sanctuary’s grounds on October 8.
TD Tree Days is the bank’s flagship volunteer program, run in collaboration with the Arbor Day Foundation and local planting organizations. It brings neighbors together for hands-on greening work that makes outdoor spaces healthier and more welcoming for everyone. The Boston planting is part of a nationwide 2026 season in which about 3,846 trees and shrubs are being planted with Mass Audubon and 11 community organizations across TD’s U.S. footprint.
This year marks the 15th anniversary of TD Tree Days in the United States. Since the very first event, TD colleagues, their families, and community partners have planted more than 22,000 trees and shrubs across the country — and the roots are showing in neighborhoods like Mattapan.
Some of the new trees went in around the sanctuary’s Red Maple Swamp, a rare and valuable urban wetland. “Each species we plant adds another thread to the web of life here,” said Erin Kelly, Sanctuary Director at Boston Nature Center, “strengthening the biodiversity of the sanctuary, from the soil and water to the birds and insects that rely on it.”
The Boston Nature Center’s trails are open daily, so visitors can watch the new grove grow season after season.
Photo: NewtonCourt / Wikimedia Commons
