Below are some of the more common questions that we have received about our project. If you read through this and still have questions, please contact us and let us know! Matt or Grant will be more than happy to personally answer your question.

Where are you getting the trees from?

Planting 1,000,000 trees includes planting germinated seeds, saplings and 1-3 year old trees across the country. We buy seeds from private wholesale distributors and proceed to germinate and sow the seeds using proper methods. We currently have a variety of species available for free on our site on the Free Tree Seeds page. We also work with local state and privately owned nurseries to buy saplings and older trees. This ensures the trees we plant are indigenous to the area and are more likely to succeed. And we also encourage you to plant your own tree in your part of the country and let us know about it!

What trees are you planting and where are you planting them?

The trees we plant depend on our region of the country. We are focused on providing indigenous species on our trip and we are aware of the need to keep ecological harmony in balance. Thus, there is no one type of tree, rather many kinds in which we are well prepared to plant and leave in the best possible condition for success. Whatever seed, sapling or tree we plant will be planted on volunteered land. We are speaking and are pursuing homeowners, schools, organizations, parks and towns to offer bits of land on which we can plant our supply of trees. If you would like to volunteer land, please fill out our volunteer form linked on the main page.

Where are you going to sleep?

We are actively seeking donated shelter from people, schools, organizations, hotels, etc. across the country. Visit out Trip Itinerary page under the Planting America Project link and see if you are in a town where we need housing! If no shelter is volunteered, we are prepared to camp out or buy a room in a local lodging facility.

What if you get injured or sick?

Hopefully nothing will happen to either of us so there is no cause for delay in the trip. We will be accompanied by our resident EMT Lauren Campanella to assess any injuries or illnesses and from there we will use our best discretion on the next course of action. We want to remain on schedule as best as possible but we will not sacrifice our goal of biking across every mile of the country and planting one million trees.

How many miles a day are you riding?

Our trip is pre-mapped and the mileage is planned in advance. We will be riding as low as 40 and as high as 110 miles per day, depending on the landscape. For most of the trip we will ride one day, spend the next in town and leave the following day. We will be staying longer in places like Denver and Eugene in hopes we can plant more trees in the areas with larger populations.

How are you getting back from Oregon?

All those who come on the trip will most likely fly back… but that’s up in the air. We may indeed drive the car back from Oregon when our trip is over, but plans are currently being secured.

How did you come up with the idea of Planting America?

There should be a better story. We were sitting in a coffee shop in our home town of Flemington, N.J. in December of 2006 when we began talking about riding across the country on bicycles. The idea seemed exciting but it wasn’t until one of us suggested planting one million trees on the trip that the idea began to turn into reality. Neither of us are cyclists or big environmentalists but we were sure through this project we might be able to provide some sort of positive change. Trees are simple enough to plant and the project seemed large enough to demonstrate the kind of proactive approach to social and environmental responsibility we saw lacking in our country and specifically our generation. We soon became a company, and then a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization and we’ve been preparing for the trip ever since.

What are you going to do if it storms on a day you are supposed to ride?

Once again, we're looking to follow our schedule to the best of our ability. The only situation we wouldn’t ride on a day we were scheduled is if a serious storm were in the area, in which case we would wait it out and ride when the threat of lightning, hail or severe winds has passed.

What are you going to do after the trip?

Immediately we will return for our senior year of college at Rutgers and Virginia Tech respectively. As far as Planting America is concerned, we will continue to pursue media to broadcast our accomplishments and promote our message. The company’s board will then meet in the winter to discuss future projects and the success of Planting America Inc.

How are you sure the trees will grow after you plant them?

We are taking as many precautionary steps as possible to ensure success of the trees we plant on our trip. By planting trees with communities, we hope the individuals with which we leave the trees care for the new trees and provide the attention we obviously would not be able to provide. Our website offers resources for tree planting and maintenance in hopes we can provide people with the tools they need to grow the trees we plant with them.

What will you do if your bike has a problem?

We are both learning as much as possible about our bikes and the way they work so if a problem occurs, we will be able to fix it and continue with our trip. There will be spare tires, tubes and parts at our disposal for a quick repair if our bike needs it. We are also prepared to contact bike technicians with whom we have been working if there is a problem we cannot diagnose or fix.

How are you carrying the trees?

Most of the trees will be provided by state and private nurseries so we won’t have to carry too many saplings or trees at any given point. Any excess trees we have will be stocked in our Planting America car and planted as soon as land and time permits.

Who will be following you on the trip?

Lauren Campanella will be driving the car that holds our equipment, clothes, food, etc. She may be accompanied by a few utility hands to help with planting events across the country and ensure every tree is properly planted.

What roads are you taking on the trip?

We are following the Trans-American Trail from Yorktown, VA to Florence, OR. The maps for this trail were donated to us by the Adventure Cycling Association (ACA). The roads on the trip will be country and rural roads that are pre-determined and legal to ride bicycles on.

How are you training?

We are out riding our Raleigh Supercourse road bikes almost every day in preparation for the trip. This is supplemented with a relatively nutritional diet and exercise every day. We have been active our whole lives so we welcome the challenge the riding across the country provides.

How do I donate to Planting America?

You can visit our Donate page found in the navigation bar. There you can find the proper steps to donate. We accept major credit cards, cash and check order and of course we thank you for your consideration.

What if I am unable to visit a town you are visiting, but want to help?

First, refer to the Trip Itinerary link on the Planting America Project page to see if you live in or around one of the towns in which we will be planting trees. If you are unable to catch up with us, you can help out in a couple of ways. You can order free seeds from us or buy trees from your state or local nursery and plant in your town and send us some pictures and the number of trees you planted so we can count it towards our goal. You can also contact local media and try to get them to cover our story. But you can always tell your friends and family about our project. Spreading our message of environmental responsibility through Planting America is one of the tenets of success for our project.

Where is my donation going?

Your donation goes directly to the cost of one million seeds, saplings and trees. We also use funds to cover legal fees, provide us with proper biking equipment and other necessities that accompany such a large project. No donated money benefits any one in the company personally as we have elected to decline salary.

How much will this project cost?

The project tentatively costs $200,000. This can fluctuate tremendously, however, depending on the number of trees donated, corporate sponsorships and private donations. We also want to ensure that everything we plant has the best chance of survival so we tend to opt for higher-quality, pre-treated seeds, sapling and trees. There are also legal and maintenance costs, bicycle and planting equipment and trip expenses.

Aren't you afraid of bears and tornadoes?

Tremendously.