The Fernandeño Tataviam Band of Mission Indians hosted community members on Friday, Feb 28 in Pacoima to celebrate the opening of the Puhawvit Native Plant Nursery.

This is the first tribe-operated nursery in Los Angeles County. The nursery will provide locally sourced, climate-resilient native trees to residents of northwest Los Angeles County.

The native plant nursery was established in collaboration with the Tataviam Land Conservancy, as well as California State University, Northridge, with funding provided by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Inflation Reduction Act, Urban and Forestry Program.

In the coming months, the Puhawvit Native Plant Nursery will host public educational workshops centered around Traditional Ecological Knowledge and cultivating connections to native trees. Community members will learn alongside the Fernandeño Tataviam Band of Mission Indians’ conservation corps, the Tiuvac’a’ai’ Tribal conservation corps, a workforce development program for young adults who gain robust training in tree propagation, cultivation, planting and other skills.

This educational nursery is part of the Sikwa’puhawam Greening Fields Program for free native trees planted directly at residential homes to address climate impacts.

Residents in eligible neighborhoods who sign up for a free native tree from the nursery will be offered their pick of resilient trees to be planted in their yard to increase shade, combat extreme heat, save energy and clean the air.

This program offers planting site inspections, planting services, tree care advice and tree health monitoring, all free of charge.

The Puhawvit Native Plant Nursery will help reintroduce climate-appropriate native trees while greening neighborhoods and cooling the region. Join this collaborative effort by signing up for a free tree at www.tataviam-nsn.us/community/greening-fields.

For any questions or more details about the program, email: trees@tataviam-nsn.us.

The Fernandeño Tataviam Band of Mission Indians is a native sovereign nation of northern Los Angeles County composed of a coalition of lineages originating in the Santa Clarita, Simi, San Fernando and Antelope valleys. The Fernandeño Tataviam Band was originally recognized in 1892, when a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney recommended that the federal government take action for Fernandeño land rights under the Mission Indian Relief Act of 1891.

For more information about the Fernandeño Tataviam Band of Mission Indians visit its website.