Adopt a STREET Tree

Eligible: Homeowners residing at the property and living in urban areas within the City of Onkaparinga are eligible to apply.

Those ineligible to apply are:

• Residents living in rural areas.
• Residents living in retirement villages.
• Residents renting their homes. 

No, as there are no access issues and the tree is being assessed and planted on the verge, there's no need for anyone to be home.

Assessment of locations will occur from April-June.

If the location is assessed as suitable, planting will occur during July to October. The Urban Forest team will not be able to provide a specific date and time that they will be on site.

ie. trees that were requested between April 2024-end March 2025 will be assessed up until June 2025 and planted July-Oct 2025.
Trees requested from April 2025-end March 2026 will be assessed up until June 2026 and planted July-Oct 2026.

As you can imagine, our busy team cover the entire council region and the nature of their work also requires them to fit around any urgent tree needs at any given time. With that in mind, they'll schedule the assessment and planting times for the Adopt a Tree program around their other commitments and nearby visits. 

The majority of street trees we plant around the council area are grown from seed by our team in the nursery at our Seaford Meadows depot.  We expanded the nursery a few years ago to cope with extra demand.

You can't choose which will be planted, but you can rest assured that our experts will make sure its right for your location. 

DID YOU KNOW......?  We're trialing an Adopt a FRUIT Tree program.  Check out the main Adopt a Tree page for the link to the fruit tree program FAQ's including eligibility criteria. 

When assessing the suitability of locations for planting new street trees, arborists take several factors into consideration to ensure that trees will thrive and grow.  

The rule of thumb is that they need to ensure that new trees are not planted any closer than 3m from a driveway, 6m from a corner plot or 1.5m from the kerb.

Other factors include existing underground services that will be compromised by digging or tree roots, planting on a corner or driveway that may block line of sight, a nearby home has solar panels that will be shaded, or existing vegetation is present.

Verges come in all shapes and sizes! The two main types of verges that are suitable for trees are the ones that have a separate patch of earth between the kerb and footpath, and those that may not include a footpath and are purely landscaped all the way to the kerb (this is still classed as the verge as it needs to be accessible to pedestrians). Sadly, if your verge is fully paved with no earth accessible we will be unable to plant a tree.

Trees can only be planted in the council owned verge and not in your privately owned garden.

Trees have so many benefits, that if you are ineligible for Adopt a Tree but have the room for a tree in your garden we'd strongly suggest investigating planting one. Click here for some ideas on species to choose.

Yes. however this decision will be left to our Urban Forest team who will assess the location and determine if there is enough space. You will be advised of this decision once the verge has been assessed.

Yes, as long as you are happy to water it/them, we are happy to plant the tree/s on your side verge. You may also request trees on both the front and side verges, however the final decision will be made by our Urban Forest team who will assess the location and determine if this is possible.

Absolutely! Whether you want to attract birds and butterflies, cool your street, add value to your home or simply make your neighbours jealous (or all of the above!), there are so many amazing benefits from landscaping or planting your verge under your new adopted tree.  

It need not just be a stripe of green like all the others in your street. It’s a garden waiting to happen. Turning your verge into a garden bed extends your garden so you can have more of your favourite plants on display and share them with your neighbours. And you no longer need to mow it!

Before you get started, head to our verge landscaping page and read the planting guidelines - they include five sample verge designs to help inspire you create your own great space.

If we've not been able to answer your questions about the Adopt a Tree program in our FAQ's above please contact our Urban Forest team for more assistance on 8384 0666.

Our Nursery team will have spent time and love nurturing your tree from seed.  Now that you're adopting it, they're keen that your new tree has the best chance to thrive after its been planted on your verge and is in your care.

You'll receive your care package from the team planting your tree.  Don't worry, they'll leave it in a safe place for you to find, it will include:

• a bucket for you to water your tree
• gardening gloves 
• a pot of fertilizer to aide growth above and below ground (be sure to read the safety information/guidelines before use)
• a list of care instructions on how best to look after your tree 

No thank you, step away from the secateurs!  As you know, sometimes what starts as a quick trim can turn into a full makeover very quickly and not always end up quite how we imagined.

As much as we know many of you are budding Sophie Thomsons', let's leave it to the experts to prune your adopted tree.  

Our Urban Forest team will organise pruning of your new street tree as part of a planned maintenance schedule.

However, if you believe your council tree needs pruning, lodge a customer request below and we’ll send one of our Urban Forest team out to assess it, and if required give it a trim. 

Lodge a request for tree pruning

Unlike the street trees planted, those residents that specifically requested a fruit tree be planted in their verge (as part of the Adopt a FRUIT Tree category) have agreed to be responsible for pruning and maintaining their fruit tree as part of the application process. 

Yes, all new trees planted require water and a little extra care to help them establish and succeed.

Residents that have requested to be part of our Adopt a Tree program, agree to be responsible for watering trees planted in their verge as part of the application process.  Adopters will receive a bucket when their tree is planted and care instructions.  In the first three years, newly planted trees typically need 2-3 buckets of water per week. Once established, the tree should require less water, but during extreme heat, even mature trees can benefit from a watering to help them thrive.

Street trees planted as part of our large-scale Suburb Improvement Program of works will be watered by Council as part of a scheduled maintenance program.  We're also making use of mother nature to water street trees. Treenet stormwater kerb inlets are being connected in areas where we're undertaking streetscape improvements or rebuilding the kerbing.

Once your tree is planted check the front of your care instructions leaflet (found in your watering bucket) to discover the species name.  It's then an easy to do a web search to find out more about your new tree and see what it looks like fully grown!  Some of the trees we're planting are listed below.

Acacia aneura - Mulga

Acacia pendula - Weeping Myall  

Acacia pycnantha - Golden Wattle

Acer rubrum - Red Maple

Agonis flexuosa - West Australian Willow Myrtle

Allocasuarina verticillata - Drooping Sheoak

Angophora costata - Apple Gum

Araucaria heterophylla - Norfolk Island Pine

Banksia Integrifolia - Coast Banksia

Banksia marginata - Silver Banksia

Brachychiton acerifolious - Flame Tree

Brachychiton populneus - Kurrajong

Brachychiton rupestris - Bottle Tree

Buckinghamia celsissima - Ivory Curl Tree

Callistemon Harkness - Gawler Hybrid Bottlebrush

Callistemon 'Kings Park Special - Crimson Bottlebrush

Callistemon viminalis - Weeping Bottlebrush(PDF, 302KB)

Celtis australis - Nettle Tree

Corymbia Eximia nana - Dwarf Bloodwood

Corymbia ficifolia 'Grafted' - Grafted Flowering Gum

Corymbia maculate - Spotted Gum

Cupaniopsis anacardioides – Tuckeroo(PDF, 333KB)

Eucalyptus albopurpurea - Purple-flowered Mallee

Eucalyptus cinerea - Argyle Apple

Eucalyptus cosmophylla - Cup Gum

Eucalyptus Fasciculosa - Pink Gum

Eucalyptus lansdowneana - Red-flowered Mallee Box

Eucalyptus leucoxylon 'Euky Dwarf' nana - Euky Dwarf

Eucalyptus leucoxylon ssp leucoxylon - South Australian Blue Gum

Eucalyptus leucoxylon ssp. Megalocarpa - Large-Fruited SA Blue Gum

Eucalyptus leucoxylon var. rosea - Pink-flowered Blue Gum

Eucalyptus macrocarpa - Grey Box

Eucalyptus odorata - Peppermint Box

Eucalyptus porosa -Mallee Box

Eucalyptus sideroxylon - Red Ironbark

Eucalyptus Torquata - Coral Gum

Ficus microcarpa var. hillii - Hill's Weeping Fig

Flindersia australis - Australian Teak

Fraxinus Raywood - Claret Ash

Fraxinus Griffithii - Evergreen Ash

Fraxinus pennsylvannica ‘Urbdell Urbanite', Regular - Urbanite Ash

Geijera parviflora – Wilga(PDF, 312KB) 

Ginkgo biloba - Maidenhair Tree(PDF, 458KB) 

Gleditsia triacanthos - Honey Locust

Gleditsia triacanthos var. inermis 'Rubylace' - Bronze Gleditsia

Hymenosporum flavum - Native Frangipani

Jacaranda mimosifolia – Jacaranda

Koelreuteria bipinnata – Chinese Flame Tree

Lagerstroemia indica x fauriei ‘Lipan’ - Crepe Myrtle Lipan

Lagerstroemia indica x fauriei ‘Sioux’ - Crepe Myrtle Sioux

Lagerstroemia indica x fauriei ‘Tuscarora’ - Crepe Myrtle Tuscarora

Lagerstroemia 'Natchez' - Crepe Myrtle Natchez

Leucopogon parviflorus - Coast Beard Heath

Lophostemon confertus - Brush Box

Melia azedarach - White Cedar

Metrosideros excelsa - New Zealand Christmas Tree

Pistachia chinensis - Chinese Pistachio(PDF, 369KB) 

Pittosporum angustifolium - Weeping Pittosporum

Prunus cerasifera 'Nigra' - Purple Cherry Plum

Pyrus betulaefolia 'Southworth' - Birch Leafed Pear

Prunus cerasifera - Upright Plum

Pyrus calleryana Chanticleer - Ornamental Pear

Quercus robur - English Oak

Quercus suber - Cork Oak

Tristaniopsis Laurena ‘Luscious’ - Kanooka gum

We understand how upsetting it can be if the tree outside your home is vandalised. If this happens, please reach out to us by submitting a customer service request. You can do so easily through our online customer request form, by calling our customer service team on 8384 0666 or popping into one of our offices in person.  Once the request is received, our Urban Forest team will contact you to offer assistance and support.

Absolutely!  There are many benefits from landscaping or planting the verge under your newly Adopted Tree.

• You create a more beautiful environment for you and your neighbourhood, making it a more enjoyable and comfortable place to be.
•  You build habitat for creatures such as bees and butterflies and increase urban biodiversity. And you help local wildlife by linking natural areas and reserves with more green space.
•  You help cool the streets and reduce the rate of global warming. The more plants you have, the cooler it can be.
•  With more plants, you reduce the loss of rainwater and help with stormwater management.
• You can increase the value and appeal of your property. And you get additional garden space.

Residents can landscape or plant on their own verge.  If you plan on simply planting on your verge in line with the Verge Planting Guide, you do not need council approval.

If you are installing hard landscapes such as paving, retaining walls or rocks, you will need approval from us - to apply to alter a public road visit the permits section of our website.

Before you get started, read our verge planting guide. It will provide you with all of the information you need and includes five sample verge designs that meet the guidelines - we hope they inspire you to create your own great space.