Document a thinned savannah woodland segment at Cooper Lake State Park, site 1, the public Cooper Lake State Park, Doctors Creek Unit, a Blackland Prairie to Post Oak Savannah transition woodland segment near Cooper, TX 75432, Delta County (2026-08-04)

This Blackland Prairie to Post Oak Savannah transition woodland segment inside the Doctors Creek Unit of Cooper Lake State Park shows bare open ground or sparse understory regrowth, with no photo record to prioritize it for hand planted native restoration. Standard: ANSI A300 Part 6 (Planting) plus ISA Best Management Practices for tree planting and establishment, applied here to hand planted native post oak savannah trees and understory inside the public Cooper Lake State Park, Doctors Creek Unit, near Cooper, TX, Delta County. SDG 15.1 and 15.2. Proof: document only stand off photo log plus segment condition note plus GPS plus ranked follow on note Method (ANSI A300 Part 6 (Planting) plus ISA Best Management Practices for tree planting and establishment, applied here to hand planted native post oak savannah trees and understory inside the public Cooper Lake State Park, Doctors Creek Unit, near Cooper, TX, Delta County. SDG 15.1 and 15.2.): 1. 1. From a public trail inside the Doctors Creek Unit of Cooper Lake State Park, photograph a thinned Blackland Prairie to Post Oak Savannah transition woodland segment. 2. 2. Note whether the segment shows bare open ground, sparse understory regrowth, or intact native post oak savannah cover. 3. 3. Photograph the site from a fixed reference point for future comparison. 4. 4. Record a ranked follow on note naming the segment for the native tree and understory planting crew. Done when: Photo of the segment taken from the public trail; Note of the segment condition (bare open ground, sparse understory regrowth, or intact native savannah cover); Ranked follow on note naming the segment for the native tree and understory planting crew; GPS waypoint of the surveyed segment

Where

the public Cooper Lake State Park, Doctors Creek Unit, a Blackland Prairie to Post Oak Savannah transition woodland segment near Cooper, TX 75432, Delta County

Pay

$85 proposed

This packet is not funded yet, so this figure is a proposed price and not money waiting in escrow. If a buyer funds it, approved proof settles that price onchain. If nobody funds it, approved proof earns provable credit toward the work instead of cash. You see which before you claim, never after.

Proof

document only stand off photo log plus segment condition note plus GPS plus ranked follow on note

This is exactly what gets it approved. Nothing settles without it.

Level

entry

Open until

2026-11-03

How this work is done

A documented method, so this packet comes out the same whoever does it. Typically 45–90 minutes. Method of record: ANSI A300 Part 6 (Planting) + ISA Best Management Practices for tree planting & establishment; Arbor Day Foundation planting standard. DIY-safe volunteer planting on cleared, utility-marked ground; no mechanized or utility-conflict digging.

Bring

• GPS-capable phone
• camera
• round-point shovel + digging fork
• hand pruners
• mulch (wood chips) + measuring stick
• watering can or hose
• gloves + closed-toe boots

Steps

1. 1. Confirm the planting spot is inside the posting radius and clear of marked utilities (811 locate honored); record the GPS waypoint.
2. 2. Photograph the bare site and the nursery stock (label/species visible) before planting.
3. 3. Dig the hole 2-3x the root-ball width and no deeper than the root ball, so the root flare will sit at or just above grade.
4. 4. Remove the container or cut away burlap/wire, gently loosen circling roots, and set the tree with the root flare visible at grade.
5. 5. Backfill with the native soil in layers, firming out air pockets; do not bury the root flare or amend heavily.
6. 6. Build a shallow watering basin, water in slowly until the backfill is saturated, and apply 2-3 inches of mulch kept 3 inches off the trunk.
7. 7. Stake only if the tree cannot stand on its own; use two loose ties that allow trunk movement, and note a removal date within one year.
8. 8. Record species, GPS, before/after photos, root-flare-at-grade confirmation, mulch depth, and water applied into the proof record; sign.

If it does not match the plan

• Unmarked or suspected buried utility, or the 811 locate is not honored -> STOP: do not dig; reschedule after a confirmed locate.
• Root ball is dry, circling/kinked, or the trunk is wounded -> do not plant as-is; soak/correct or reject the stock and note it, rather than establish a failing tree.
• Right-of-way, overhead-line conflict, or a species/site mismatch -> flag for the site steward and choose an approved spot/species; never plant into a conflict.

What counts as done

• Photo of the segment taken from the public trail
• Note of the segment condition (bare open ground, sparse understory regrowth, or intact native savannah cover)
• Ranked follow on note naming the segment for the native tree and understory planting crew
• GPS waypoint of the surveyed segment

Proof is measured against these, not judged by taste.

The standard this serves

Tree Planting and Establishment. Planting a tree properly is a codified craft, and the arborists' standards are blunt about why: most young trees that die were killed at planting, by a hole dug too deep, a root ball left bound, a first summer without water. Mastery looks like trees you planted years ago still standing, which is the only measure arborists accept. The craft lives in exactly the steps this packet asks for: the wide shallow hole, the freed roots, the mulch kept off the trunk, the watering that follows. Plant one tree correctly and you know something real.