Chicago received 9,000 reports of tree emergencies following July’s tornadoes, and a whopping 6,500 of those involved entire trees felled.

Chicago has touted the tens of thousands of trees it’s planted in recent years. But the city’s volunteer TreeKeepers say too many saplings die for lack of a maintenance plan.

“Trees need care like streets need repairing,” said Malcolm Whiteside, deputy commissioner for Chicago’s Department of Forestry, who threw his support behind the creation of an Urban Forestry Advisory Board.