Renewing the Countryside (RTC) launched a mini-forest project in 2023 with a community survey project in the Rondo-Frogtown neighborhoods of St. Paul. A mini-forest is a small native forest patch that communities can plant in spaces around where they live and work to restore degraded land. Based on our results, RTC planted its first mini-forest in May 2024.
Over two days, 80+ volunteers from Maxfield Elementary, Engineers Without Borders USA, Ramsey County Master Gardeners, and the surrounding neighborhood joined forces to assist Renewing the Countryside, Urban Farm and Garden Alliance, Great River Greening, and the MN Department of Natural Resources in planting 450 seedlings at Pilgrim Baptist Church - St. Paul, MN. Even despite rain, spirits amongst the volunteers and for the mini-forest project were high. Throughout the summer, dedicated crews watered the trees and removed weeds to help establish and maintain the mini-forest.
Watch the video below to hear from volunteers, organizers, and planners of the 2024 mini-forest project at Pilgrim Baptist Church.
Goals of RTC's first mini-forest project include:
- provide education about the benefits of urban forests
- learn where people would like to see mini-forests grow in their community
- learn how people in the community would like to be involved
In 2025 and 2026, RTC and many of the partners mentioned above will take be planting new mini-forests at Brooklyn Center and Maxfield Elementary schools as part of Trust for Public Land's Community Schoolyard program.
To learn more about mini-forests, explore the "Let's Talk Mini-Forests" graphic below; made in conjunction with the University of Minnesota's Institute on the Environment (IonE) Green Screen Team.
RTC's mini-forest work in the news:
The Magic of Mini Forests:Why the Miyawaki method helps communities in their fight against climate impact and rising urban heat - American Planning Association's Planning Magazine, Oct. 9, 2025
Growing Shade - DNR's Minnesota Conservation Volunteer, Sept-Oct 2024 issue
As climate change heats up communities, thoughtful management of urban forests can provide relief - DNR's Minnesota Conservation Volunteer, Sept-Oct 2024 issue
