It was Earth Day this weekend and Saturday's gorgeous weather meant spring smacked us all in the face. All over town folks fired up their hoes, rakes and hoses to start the year's gardening. But even if you don't have your own 40 acres and a mule, you can help the local heroes at Friends of the Urban Forest in their mission to fill San Francisco with plant life large and small. This team was spotted beautifying Noe Valley on Saturday. Check out the many ways you can get involved, too more ›

A multi-car crash on Highway 13 Thursday morning resulted in several car wrecks and the death of an 18-year-old Washington man. The tree crashed down onto southbound traffic near Park Boulevard in Oakland at around 4:20 a.m. more ›

A new group of "renegade arborists" is twig-bent on bringing fruit to the streets of San Francisco, the Ex reports today. Calling themselves the Guerrilla Grafters, the group co-founded by pear progenitor Tara Hui, has already produced a couple of pieces of the fruit by grafting a fruit-bearing branch to a decorative Asian pear tree in Hayes Valley. more ›

And just like that, a smattering of Occupy Oakland protesters have returned to Frank Ogawa. But this time they've taken to the trees. OakFoSho has recorded footage he shot live at the scene during the early morning tree climb. Prior to this morning's stuny tree-sitters resided in the trees at the plaza for about a month. However, according to Oakland Tribune, "Police said the structure was deemed to be illegal lodging and that human waste had been found under the tree." more ›

In what promises to be an unyielding display of unbridled Christmas horror, officials at City Hall will gather on the front steps on Tuesday to witness the 25th annual chipping of Christmas trees in a giant wood chipper. Terror will know no bounds as tree after tree is systematically forced through a machine that will turn onetime holiday decor into bits of sawdust and woodchips. more ›

Instead of cutting and hauling a typical Christmas tree to your living room (you murderer), why not get a living tree to decorate with care for the holidays? San Francisco's Department of the Environment and Friends of the Urban Forest (FUF) will offer just that with their "Dreaming of a Green Christmas" program. And after the holidays end, your tree will be planted as a neighborhood street tree. more ›

Aren't there enough wineries in Northern California? Do we really need another? Especially when it could mean the death of a redwood forest? As the LA Times reported in August, Codorniu’s Artesa Napa Winery and Premier Pacific Vineyards plan to build two new wineries in Annapolis will "clear-cut over 1,900 acres of these redwoods." In addition to killing off a forest in the process of replenishing itself (the area was hit hard by the logging industry), it would also be built on the burial grounds of the Kashia Pomo tribe (where they still live and worship) and possibly harm the Gualala River, "home to endangered salmon and other at-risk wildlife." more ›

In splat-related news, Muni Diaries has word that, during this morning's commute, a big tree fell down and knocked over "electrical wires on the outbound J line between the 22nd and 24th street stops." Egads. more ›

Opponents of the proposed high speed rail, which would extend from the Bay Area to Los Angeles have brandished their latest weapon: a tree. It seems that Stanford’s iconic Redwood, “El Palo Alto,” is directly along the route of the system. more ›

Early Sunday morning, a woman jumped to her death from an eighth floor apartment building at 888 O'Farrell. The scene, according to SF Appeal, was grim. The unidentified woman, while jumping from the burning apartment "hit a street-level tree during the fall and was killed." more ›

You'll likely recognize this species of tree, with the pretty, fuzzy red flowers, of which there are apparently almost 5,000 across the city. It's called a New Zealand Christmas tree, or Metrosideros excelsus, and despite being widely planted in the 1980s and endorsed by the City, it's now been recognized as a mistake and a bit of a nuisance species. This is because its roots -- which can grow to 9 inches in diameter -- can destroy infrastructure like sewer pipes and sidewalks once the tree reaches maturity, which these trees are doing by the thousands right about now here in S.F. more ›

Large tree falls at Fourth and Brannan in SOMA. more ›

You just can't top this one, Gavin Newsom. United Nations Environment Programme promises to plant a tree for every person who follows them on Twitter. Check it: "UNEPandYou: Remember, UNEP will plant one tree for every twitterer who follows @UNEPandYou by 5 June, World Environment Day. 3 days to go!" Gimmicky? Very. Legit? Um, let's hope. So far, as of 3:35 p.m., they have 4,446 followers. Might you be one more? more ›

What's going on here? more ›

Do any SFisters out there have American Express cards? If so, use it this week at participating businesses -- or look for the pretty tree icon at right while out and about, and win our city a boat load of trees. Through October 31, each transaction counts as a vote in American Express' "Roots for the City" competition between eight U.S. cities. San Francisco still has a chance to beat out Los Angeles and Atlanta. We cannot let them win (even though maybe they need more trees than we do, since we are so superiorly green, or are we?)! Each city has already won $100,000 for their participation and tree planting projects, and the grand winner will win $300,000. The City and County of San Francisco's Trees for Tomorrow program plans to use the tree-planting grant to create a tree nursery, education and job-training program for at-risk youth that will establish trees to reforest a 20-block greenbelt on Sunset Boulevard. more ›

Charming. The spoiled children high atop the Berkeley redwood have, of course, resorted to (allegedly) throwing their urine and fecal matter at arborists trying to get them down. (Yeah. Fight the power. Idiots.) If you recall, some people under the false impression that they're making a difference have quickly turned an attempt to save a patch of trees into one of Berkeley's most massive protest fails to date. They are scheduled to get ripped from said trees any moment now. more ›

Whether pro or con saving the oak tree grove on the UCB campus, it's safe to say that we're all looking forward to seeing just how how the last few tree-sitters are extracted. This morning, cherry pickers and scaffolding have been fashioned around redwood tree where the last few remaining protesters sit. (And below? Protesters this morning are benignly screaming like children, banging drums, and burning sage. Jesus.) While campus authorities decline to say when or how they plan on getting them down, we're going to go ahead and say tranquilizer darts sometime this afternoon. Stay tuned! (Oh hey, there are 20 some odd magnolia trees ready to be ripped out on Third and Harrison streets in San Francisco, activists. Just so you know.) more ›

After nine months of living in the UC Berkeley oak groves, Dumpster Muffin (AKA Amanda Tierney) finally climbed down yesterday. Alas. The 21-year-old activist, according to ABC 7, was "having troubles standing up," which prompted her surrender. She was then arrested by UC Police for trespassing the moment she touched ground. But! The battle isn't over. Three tree sitters still remain up high for at least another "two weeks, when Cal's lawyers go to court again." more ›