On a cool morning with a hint of smoke lingering from nearby wildfires, Jackson Bonn, residing in Belleville, Ont., organized his team of tree planters and conducted a brief safety briefing. Each planter was assigned a specific area to work on for the day.
Throughout his 12-hour shift, Bonn hurried from planter to planter, ensuring they had enough tree seedlings and were planting them correctly in the designated spots. Planters carried heavy bags filled with 13 to 18 kilograms of seedlings, diligently replanting a clearcut area of spruce trees that had been harvested a few months earlier.
During that day, Bonn was fortunate enough to have some time to plant trees himself. Immersing himself in the task, he likened his movements to those of an Olympic freestyle swimmer, striving for fluidity and precision with each shovel strike.
Having dedicated his adult life to tree planting, Bonn, like many others, spends summers in remote Canadian wilderness areas replanting forests that have been cleared by logging and fires. Depending on the terrain, planters typically plant between 1,500 to 5,000 trees daily, earning a piece rate for each tree planted. Bonn mentioned that planting 2,000 trees at a rate of 17.5 cents per tree would yield him $350.
Embarking on his tree planting journey as a financially strapped 18-year-old fresh from a trip to Southeast Asia, Bonn was initially drawn to the idea of earning money through hard work and experiencing a different lifestyle. Despite the demanding nature of the job, tree planters are known for their pride and dedication, often referring to their time away from planting as the “off-season.”
While Bonn appreciates the camaraderie and physical challenges of tree planting, he acknowledges that it is ultimately just a job and not his long-term career plan. Taking a break from his annual tree planting routine in British Columbia in 2025, he enjoyed a quieter summer on the East Coast, allowing himself time to explore other aspects of his identity beyond tree planting.
Returning to the bush after his hiatus, Bonn, now 24 and in between academic pursuits, finds fulfillment in running his own crew and mentoring new planters. He views tree planting as a quintessentially Canadian occupation, uniquely tied to the country’s vast wilderness and environmental challenges, such as forest fires and climate change impacts.
Despite the physical and emotional toll of the job, Bonn cherishes the deep connection he feels to the land, his colleagues, and the laborious yet rewarding work of tree planting. He considers being a tree planter a source of pride and a transformative experience that has broadened his horizons and deepened his appreciation for Canada’s natural beauty.
As he continues his love affair with tree planting for the foreseeable future, Bonn sees it not just as a job but as a community, a badge of honor, and a way of connecting with nature and himself on a profound level. His dedication to planting trees, both literally and metaphorically, remains unwavering as he immerses himself in the bush, nurturing roots that extend beyond the soil.