The City of Fremont will be initiating a monitoring program for a tiny, tree-damaging bark beetle called the Invasive Shothole Borer (ISHB). This non-native beetle is believed to have been introduced from Asia and was first detected in Southern California in 2012. ISHB has now recently been detected in neighboring Santa Clara County. ISHB introduces a fungus into the tree that causes decline, branch dieback, and eventually tree death. Common landscape trees like sycamore, cottonwood, sweetgum, trident maple, willow, and box elder are especially susceptible.

Early Detection

Regular monitoring is recommended by University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources to facilitate early detection of ISHB. The City will be installing sticky panel traps on city property to monitor for activity.

What to look for in your own trees:

1. Tiny entry holes in the tree bark.  Perfectly round and less than 1mm wide (about the size of the tip of a medium ball-point pen).
2. Symptoms and signs accompanying entry holes.  Dark, wet staining, thick gumming, boring dust/frass (resembles fine saw dust).
3. Dieback. Dead branches with wilting leaves may be a sign of severe infection.

What you can do:

1. Keep your trees healthy. Proper irrigation and maintenance will increase your trees’ ability to protect itself from ISHB and other pests.
2. Check your tree. Look for the common signs and symptoms mentioned above.
3. Call a professional. A certified arborist would be able to assist with identification and management.

More About the Beetle and Management Programs

• Shothole borer beetles, University of California Agriculture and Natural Resource
• Fremont's Urban Forestry efforts

To celebrate the City being recognized by the Arbor Day Foundation as a “Tree City USA” for the 27th consecutive year, May 14, 2024, was proclaimed Arbor Day in Fremont by the City Council at its May 14 City Council Meeting. The City of Fremont's annual Arbor Day proclamation promotes public awareness and pride through knowledge and appreciation of trees and their community benefits.

The City celebrates Arbor Day year-round by planting and maintaining trees and by engaging residents through community planting events and educational opportunities. Trees benefit residents by providing shade, removing air pollutants, saving energy, reducing noise, and supporting wildlife habitat. Trees are powerful in their ability to improve the livability, health, and ecology of our city.

Arbor Day was first observed in 1872 with the planting of more than one million trees. It is intended to provide a reminder and opportunity for people to come together in recognition of the wonders of trees and is now observed throughout the nation and the world. The Tree City USA program started in 1976 to recognize municipalities that maintain and grow their tree canopy and a way to publicly demonstrate their commitment to trees. The Arbor Day Foundation is the world’s largest nonprofit dedicated to planting trees and supports both Arbor Day and Tree City USA.

The City of Fremont’s Urban Forestry Division, in partnership with ReScape and with generous grant funding from CalFire, is excited to announce the completion of an urban forestry learning course that was tailored to our community. The course was designed to empower local residents to become stewards of our urban canopy, fostering a deeper connection to our environment, and providing the tools and knowledge to create a greener, healthier city. Twenty-three participants were instructed in fundamental topics, providing a strong foundation in urban forestry as well as practical experiences and skills for maintaining and caring for urban trees.

On Sunday, April 13, the City partnered with local urban forestry nonprofit Urban Forest Friends to hold a community tree celebration and Arbor Day planting event at Cabrillo Trail Park. Twenty native and climate-adapted trees were planted. The event also featured educational opportunities for the community to learn about trees and wildlife. Free face painting and cotton candy was well received by the youth in attendance. Over 60 volunteers, local and state leaders, as well as City staff participated in this event. The event was funded by a grant that Urban Forest Friends received from Pacific Gas and Electric Company through its California ReLeaf Growing Green Communities grant program. Also highlighted at the event was the City of Fremont’s new Free Street Tree program funded by a CalFire grant. To learn more about this opportunity for a free street tree, visit our website. 

Tree Planting Event

On January 20, 2024, Fremont partnered with local urban forestry non-profit Urban Forest Friends (UFF) to plant 16 trees in Central Park. The trees and materials were paid for through CalFire grant funding that the city was awarded in June 2023. UFF provided tools, training, volunteer coordination, and refreshments. The event had a fantastic turnout with over 50 UFF volunteers braving light, morning showers to participate. The sycamores and live oaks planted are large-statured species and in the coming years they should provide much-needed shade and environmental benefits to residents and park visitors. As the city continues its ongoing efforts to grow and preserve our urban canopy, a huge thank you goes out to all those that participated.

If you, or others in your neighborhood, would like free trees planted in front your property, please click on: Want a Free Tree? .

Please contact Urban Forest Friends if you would like to volunteer to participate in future community planting events.

Tree Maintenance Work to Begin on Major City Streets

Beginning the week of August 28th West Coast Arborist, one of the City contracted tree service providers, will begin an extensive street tree pruning project designed to improve street sweeper access at strategic locations throughout the city. With an estimated 2,000 trees blocking the path of sweepers, it is necessary to properly prune these trees so all sections of roadway can be swept on a consistent basis.  Street sweeping remains an effective tool to maintain compliance with our Municipal Regional Stormwater Permit. Project work will be spread out among more than 90 street sections across the city, with the bulk of these being on larger streets such as Fremont Blvd., Paseo Padre Pkwy., Mowry Ave., Thornton Ave., Decoto Rd., and Mission Blvd. All materials removed will be chipped and reused in landscapes. The project is expected to provide clearance for five to seven years and will be completed by the end of the calendar year. 

For more information, contact our Urban Forestry Division by email.

Irvington Business District Palm Pruning Project - UPDATE

On December 4, Fremont initiated a one-time tree pruning project on 173 palms along Fremont Blvd. and Washington Blvd. in the Irvington Business District. Work was initially anticipated to be completed by December 11, however on December 6, due to complications from rain and other factors, this work was postponed, and it is now estimated to restart again on January 16 with completion by February 2.

The project is aimed at ensuring the health and safety of street palm trees, while also reducing potential inconveniences to local businesses and community members.  By proactively addressing these concerns, the city hopes to minimize future disruptions, traffic interference, and reduce issues with palm debris falling during winter storms.

Plaza Park Tree Restoration Project

Fremont’s Parks Maintenance staff has completed a transformative tree canopy restoration project at Plaza Park. During the January 2023 winter storms, the park lost several large eucalyptus trees and with them significant shade and wildlife habitat. This project not only replaced the large statute trees, but also added understory plantings and general landscape updates and improvements. In addition to mitigation of lost tree canopy the project also included:

Drought-tolerant landscape species selection and planting

Irrigation updates

Soil improvements

Mulch application

Decorative landscape features

Please contact Urban Forestry Manager Chris Curry with any question or for volunteer opportunities at 510-494-4854 or send an email.

 Subscribe to our volunteer opportunities. 

May 2019

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection awarded $860,000 to Fremont as part of the Urban & Community Forestry Proposition 68 grant.  This will allow the City to: 

• Establish Fremont’s first Urban Forestry Master Plan for all trees in streets and parks, including a 40-year plan horizon for planning the creation of a healthy and expanded urban forest,
• Conduct a thorough inventory and assessment of over 70,000 public trees,
• In the next two years, plant 250 new trees,
• Establish an education and outreach program to teach residents how to care for and manage their trees,
• Establish a community Tree Advisory Committee to help bring awareness and to promote the Urban Forest, help communicate values and benefits of trees to a diverse population, and to assist with tree disputes and appeals.