A handful of members of the Lehighton Shade Tree Commission spent Saturday morning planting trees.

Thirteen trees were obtained by the commission through a grant program called TreePennsylvania, administered through the Pa. Urban Community Forestry Council.

Eleven of the trees were planted in the Lehighton Cemetery and two were planted at Baer Memorial Park.

Sara Wingert, chairman of the Shade Tree Commission, said the trees were awarded by the state on an application basis during which Shade Tree Commission were required to attend a presentation regarding tree planting.

According to the TreePennsylvania website, successful applicants are awarded 10 to 30 large caliper root trees. The must be immediately planted on publicly owned and publicly accessible land.

Assisting Shade Tree Commission members was Henry Long, superintendent of the Lehighton Cemetery.

Wingert said a variety of trees were planted including American elm, basswood, red oak, swamp white oak, ginkgo, hornbeam, red maple and London plain sycamore.

Besides winning the grant for the TreePennsylvania program, the Lehighton Shade Tree Commission is active throughout the year in arbor-related events.

It has managed to win Lehighton borough the title of Tree City USA by the Arbor Day Foundation for the 32nd consecutive year.