Hurricane Helene uprooted thousands of trees, causing extreme canopy loss in Augusta after making landfall on Sept. 27.

While March is a great time to replant, officials are still grappling with clean up.

“Our initial focus was on assessing the damage to each county park and greenspace,” Cassidy Harris, a spokesperson for Columbia County, told The Augusta Chronicle in an email. “The first priority was removing downed trees to ensure the safety and accessibility of our parks for residents. Continuing cleanup and restoring the parks remains a top priority."

Once more clean up takes place, the county will reassess priorities, said Harris.

"At this stage, we have not yet identified specific trees for replacement, nor have we allocated funding for replanting," she noted.

Clean up before replanting

Seth Hawkins, urban and community forestry program coordinator for the Georgia Forestry Commission, said in his experience it’s best to get everything cleaned up before moving on to replanting trees.

“I'm sure a lot of people are being proactive and planting on their own,” said Hawkins. “We've definitely been in close talks with Augusta-Richmond County. We assisted them with the data collection of the tree damage right after the storm. We've been providing general and risk tree assessments as well as long-term recovery. We are there for the city whenever they are ready to have that conversation.”

The Georgia Forestry Commission assessed more than 2,000 trees in public right of ways and parks that were damaged. More than 1,300 trees were labeled for removal in Augusta.

Both Augusta-Richmond County and Columbia County remain dedicated to clean up.

“As we continue our recovery efforts, our government remains committed to assessing the condition of our parks and green spaces to determine the best path forward,” city officials told The Augusta Chronicle in an email. “Currently, we are still in the debris cleanup phase for our recreation areas, which is a necessary step before any replanting efforts can begin.”

City officials added, “In the coming months, we anticipate consulting with key partners and environmental experts to develop a thoughtful and strategic approach to tree restoration. While it is difficult to provide a definitive timeline at this stage, we expect that within the next six months, we will have a clearer plan for replanting based on recommendations from these consultations.”

What about replanting trees at your home?

For homeowners who are over the clean up hump and ready to replant, Constance Hughes, horticulturist at Grass Roots Garden Center, said now is a good time.

“You want to get your trees and plants in before the heat comes,” said Hughes. “You want your plants to be a little bit established before we get hit with any humidity. They’re already going to be stressed a little getting planted. You want to ease that stress on them as much as possible.”

Trees offer many benefits

Grass Roots Garden Center is located in Graniteville, South Carolina, and carries more than 100 varieties of trees.

“People need to know how tall of a tree they want and if they have the space for that size tree,” said Hughes. “Some people lost a lot of shade after Helene.”

For homeowners looking for a sturdier variety to possibly withstand the next hurricane, Hughes said, “Maples and oaks are considered a sturdier type of tree. I mean, Helene had 100 mile an hour winds, there's not much that will withstand that.”

This reporting content is supported by a partnership with several funders and Journalism Funding Partners.

Erica Van Buren is the climate change reporter for The Augusta Chronicle, part of the USA TODAY Network. Connect with her at [email protected] or on X: @EricaVanBuren32.