Neighbourhood Planting Program

Applicants

Applying groups must:

• Be a grassroots, community-based not-for-profit group or organization (incorporated or unincorporated) based in Toronto with annual operating budgets of less than $500,000.
• Have at least one year of experience as a group/organization.
• Have the staff or volunteer capacity to plan, promote and deliver an event.
• Be accountable to and representative of the community they serve.
• Be in good standing with the City of Toronto. Previously funded groups who have failed to meet the terms and conditions of a past grant or who have any outstanding requirements may be ineligible.

Trustees

• Groups requesting financial assistance must be incorporated or unincorporated groups can work with a trustee organization to receive funding.
• A trustee organization is an incorporated not-for-profit organization and/or registered charity based in Toronto with audited financial statements and the organizational structure to administer funds. A trustee will hold funds and disburse monies to the group, assume liability for project activities, and provide insurance, administrative support and mentorship.
• Applicants are responsible for locating and engaging the services of their own trustee organization prior to the application deadline. For more information, contact forestrygrants@toronto.ca.
• A trustee organization is not required for eligible incorporated groups or unincorporated groups that are only requesting free trees and shrubs and technical assistance (no financial assistance).

Groups can apply to host either a free tree and shrub giveaway event to private properties in Toronto or a planting event held on privately-owned land in Toronto. All trees and shrubs must be planted on private land within the City of Toronto.

Duration

Spring Events: Must take place between April to mid-June

Fall Events: Must take place between September to mid-November

Event Requirements

Events must take place within the City of Toronto in a location accessible by public transit and must adhere to the City of Toronto’s Human Rights and Anti-Harassment/Discrimination Policy.

Groups planning to host a giveaway event in a City-owned park are responsible for securing a permit from Parks and Recreation ahead of their event. For more information, visit One-Time Booking of Parks and Recreation Facilities.

Groups interested in hosting a planting event must contact forestrygrants@toronto.ca prior to submitting an application.

The City will send successful applicants an order form for available native trees and shrubs, which must be completed and returned at least two weeks before the event.

Groups are responsible for pre-registering participants for a tree giveaway event and must allow adequate time to pre-register participants using the registration method/platform of their choice. The group may be invited to participate in a voluntary City-directed post-planting success survey.

Groups can also offer multiple plants to each participant for a tree giveaway but should not provide more than five trees/shrubs to one address.

City of Toronto staff will coordinate the plant delivery on the event date (or another agreed-upon date) and will be on-site to receive the delivery.

Groups are responsible for running the event and must have at least one member available to help receive and unload plants. City staff will contact groups directly to arrange delivery times, which may be as early as 7 a.m.

Ineligible Projects

• Activities that duplicate, conflict with or fall within the scope of another program or service being delivered or developed by the City of Toronto or another organization (e.g. Ravine Strategy).
• Activities that are contrary to the policies of the City of Toronto and/or applicable federal, provincial and municipal legislation, regulations and policies.
• Activities that are not consistent with good arboricultural practices.
• Activities that meet any tree planting requirement or obligation under the City of Toronto’s tree bylaws, as a condition for planning and development approval or any other laws or regulations.
• Research projects, summer camps, political or religious activities/services.
• Purchase, care or maintenance of invasive species.
• Activities taking place outside the City of Toronto.
• Tree planting on lands owned or managed by the City of Toronto, including parks, ravines, natural areas and the road right of way.
• Activities taking place on lands without the prior written approval of the property owner.
• Activities taking place on or adjacent to an Environmentally Significant Areas (ESA), Areas of Natural and Scientific Interest (ANSI), Provincially Significant Wetlands, protected areas under the Ravine and Natural Feature Protection By-law, or any other protected or sensitive natural area without the prior written approval of the City.
• Activities taking place on lands owned or controlled by the Toronto District School Board, Toronto Catholic District School Board or Toronto Community Housing Corporation without their prior written approval.

Eligible Expenses

Examples of the types of expenses that are typically eligible for funding:

• Permit fees or rental fees for event location
• Mulch
• Promotional materials such as:
  • Flyers
  • Posters
  • Signage
• Health and safety materials for volunteers such as:
  • First aid kid
  • Hand sanitizer
  • High visibility vests
  • Gloves
• Event registration platform fee
• Materials and supplies such as:
  • Clipboards
  • Labels
  • Highlighters
  • Pens
  • Paper
• Other expenses deemed eligible by the City of Toronto. If you have a question about eligible expenses, please contact forestrygrants@toronto.ca.

Ineligible Expenses

Examples of the types of expenses that are ineligible for funding:

• Core operating funding or costs related to ongoing programs/services
• Internal or external salaries or other people-costs
• Overhead and administrative costs
• Taxes (e.g. GST and HST for which the recipient is eligible for a tax rebate and all other costs eligible for rebates)
• Contingency costs
• Capital costs or infrastructure such as:
  • Building repairs or renovations
  • Construction of sheds or garden beds
  • Purchase of computers or audio/visual equipment
• Other costs deemed ineligible by the City such as:
  • Summer camps
  • Land purchases
  • Political activities
  • Religious activities/services
  • Advocacy expenses
  • Research projects
  • Fundraising activities
  • Endowments or endowment building
  • Scholarships, grants or bursaries
  • Awards and prizes
  • Alcohol purchases

Application Process

There are two application periods each year for spring and fall events:

• Spring Events: January 12 to February 14, 2026
• Fall Events: June 1 to July 9, 2026

Applications must be submitted online through the Toronto Grants, Rebate, and Incentives Portal (TGRIP). Please allow time to create an account and organizational profile within TGRIP if you have not done so already.

Applicants are encouraged to submit their applications early if possible so that City staff can review and provide eligibility feedback ahead of the submission deadline.

Applications will be reviewed and assessed by City of Toronto staff. All applicants will be notified of the decision.

In the application, applicants will:

1. Provide a proposed event location.
   1. If the proposed event location is a city park, applicants will also be asked to provide a second, non-park location as a backup.
   2. Groups are responsible for securing their own event permits from Parks and Recreation. For more information, visit One-Time Booking of Parks and Recreation Facilities.
2. Specify a first and second choice for an event date.
   1. Please note that plant deliveries typically cannot take place on Sundays or long weekends. Delivery on an alternative date prior to the event is possible, however the group will be responsible for the care and storage of the plants in a secure location until their event.
3.  Specify the number of trees/shrubs requested for their event.
   1. There is a minimum plant order requirement of 50 trees/shrubs.
   2. City staff may approve less than the requested plant amount based on the applicant’s experience and seasonal plant availability. Successful applicants will be notified of their allotment.
   3. Groups are expected to meet but not exceed the number of plants requested in the application. Requests for additional plants requires approval from the City prior to registering additional participants.
4. Provide an estimate of the number of people engaged.
   1. This number includes all group members or volunteers running the event, as well as people who will attend the event.
5. Provide an event budget outlining all expenses, if requesting financial assistance.

Assessment Criteria

Applications will be evaluated based on four areas: concept, feasibility, impact and budget, if applicable.

1. Concept: Project must closely align with the stated purpose of the program.
2. Feasibility: Application should clearly demonstrate the applicant’s experience and capacity to successfully deliver the event, along with clearly defined deliverables and a feasible process for how they will be achieved.
3. Impact: Application should demonstrate the impact of the event, including program’s purpose, contribution to increasing canopy cover, and contribution to increasing resident engagement and leadership.
4. Budget: If requesting financial assistance, event costs should be reasonable and necessary to achieve the proposed deliverables.

Additional assessment considerations include:

• Geographic representation across the City of Toronto
• Locations with low canopy cover or a high need for tree planting and/or stewardship
• Community impact and equity impacts of proposed activities
• City staff may use publicly available information or other external sources to help review and verify the information in your application.
• The total availability of plants and financial assistance based on seasonal allotments

Reporting

Groups must submit a final report through the Toronto Grants, Rebates and Incentives Portal one month after the event date.

The final report will include:

• Event photos or participant testimonials.
• Final number of trees/shrubs planted and people engaged.
• Report on expenses if you received financial assistance.