Urban Forest Designer is built for the people doing the work — volunteer leads, partner organizations, municipal staff, and the residents who turn up on planting day.

What it helps you do

Plan together, in one place

Sites, species choices, photos, schedules, and notes all live in a single shared workspace. Everyone working on a project sees the same plan, so the knowledge doesn't sit in one person's head or get lost between email threads and spreadsheets.

Make better species choices

Each group curates a library of plants suited to their region, drawing on trusted ecological data and local experience. When it's time to design a site, you're choosing from a pool that's already been thought through — not starting from a blank page every time.

Design with intention

Sites are broken into zones, and each zone can follow a different planting approach depending on the goal: dense native woodland, pollinator habitat, edge planting, or something more free-form. The tool guides the design without dictating it, so groups can apply proven methods while still being creative about what fits their site.

Capture useful data as you go

Site conditions, planting dates, species lists, and design decisions are recorded as part of the planning process — not as a separate paperwork task. That means when a funder asks what was planted, or a new volunteer asks why, the answer is already there.

Steward the planting for the long haul

A planting isn't finished when the volunteers go home. The tool keeps the original plan connected to ongoing monitoring, maintenance logs, and site photos, so groups can see how their work matures over years and learn from what thrives.

Share what works

As more groups use the platform, their projects, species knowledge, and lessons become a growing resource — making it easier for the next neighbourhood, school, or community group to start their own planting with the benefit of everyone who came before.