The Gladstone Elementary School is looking a little greener after receiving a grant for its playground.

The Tree Canada program chipped in $3500 for the project.

School administrative assistant Donna Lach explains they originally weren't chosen as recipients.

"With COVID-19 and all of the complications, someone backed out, so they offered us the grants that someone was missing out on. They called us right at the end of August and said that we received it, and if we could get our act together, then we could have the grant if we had our trees planted by October 31st."

There were five blue spruce, four Okanes Poplar, and four Assiniboine Poplar trees planted near the swing-sets on the playground that were fundraised for by the Elementary School's Parent Council.

The trees will allow students to gain more knowledge about nature, flowers, and ecosystems. Lach says the trees were planted on October 10th.

"We hired professionals to dig the holes and plant the trees because they were a lot more mature trees. With the seedlings, we could have had the kids more involved in the planting itself, but with this change in plans, we had to go with the professionals planting the trees and digging the big holes. The kids were involved by raking the dirt, tidying it up and, filling in the holes."

The sponsorship for the Tree Canada program is provided by TELUS. Students and staff at Gladstone Elementary are excited to be able to watch the trees grow.

Lach says Gladstone Elementary plans to do even more work to the playground.

"We would like to plant more trees in the future, and provide some more natural places of interest for the students or their families even after school or on weekends, to gather on the playground and sit in the shade. We are also hoping to put up a couple of gazebo's that will allow families to gather there as well."