Buy a tree and Cairo will plant it outside your home for free

Cairo residents who want a tree outside their building can now have it planted for free. The General Authority for Cleanliness and Beautification of Cairo will plant trees on pavements and in front of homes and commercial properties at no charge, as long as residents buy the trees themselves, CairoScene reported on Monday.

Governor of Cairo Ibrahim Saber said the authority would carry out the planting "at no charge" once residents have bought the trees. Specialist teams from the authority will choose the exact spot, plant the tree and look after it in its first period, which the governorate says should help more young trees survive.

The service comes with a set of planting guidelines from the governorate. Trees outside homes and shops must be four to five metres apart. They must not block traffic, and they must not get in the way of pipes, cables or other services under the pavement or along the road. The species planted should use relatively little water while still giving enough shade, though the guidelines as reported do not name specific trees. The aim, according to the report, is to make planting on pavements consistent across the city instead of leaving each building to plant whatever it likes, wherever it likes.

Street trees are a recurring subject in Cairo, where shade on the pavement makes a real difference for most of the year, and where residents often plant in front of their buildings on their own.

To use the service, call the authority's hotline or speak to the garden department manager or the neighbourhood supervisor at your district office (hay). The report did not give a hotline number, a list of districts, or a start date, so ask your district office which trees it accepts before you buy one, and agree the spot with its team so your tree meets the spacing rule. The trees are your cost; the planting and early care are free.