Planting a tree is simple. But the reason you plant, and the way you choose to plant, is what makes your impact meaningful.
Tree-Nation uses two core concepts to help you organize your planting:
| Concept | What it means | Simple explanation |
|---|---|---|
| Planting Habit | The reason or occasion behind your planting | Why you plant & offset |
| Planting Action | The method you use to plant under that Habit | How you plant |
| My Action | Your personalized version of an Action |
Your own configured setup |
Together, Planting Habits and Actions help you move from a one-time tree planting to a clear, repeatable, and trackable commitment. A perfect way to integrate your Carbon offsetting strategy.
The simple idea: Why and how
Every tree planted on Tree-Nation answers two questions:
- Why are you planting and offsetting? → This is a Planting Habit (the motivation and initiative)
- How will you plant? → This is a Planting Action (the method)
For example:
| If your reason is... | Your Planting Habit could be... | Your Planting Action could be... |
|---|---|---|
| Celebrate Earth Day | #EarthDay | Plant 100 trees for Earth Day |
| Welcome new employees | #WelcomeToTheTeam | Gift one tree to every new employee |
| Offset your team | #OffsetTeam | Plant and gift trees every month for your company team |
| Thank customers | #TreesForCustomers | Gift a tree to every new customer |
| Celebrate birthdays | #BirthdayTrees | Send trees on each birthday |
A Habit gives meaning to your planting and carbon offsetting.
An Action turns that meaning into something you can do.
What is a Planting Habit?
A Planting Habit is the reason or occasion behind planting a tree and offsetting your carbon footprint.
Think of it as a theme or motivation — expressed as a hashtag — that gives purpose to your planting activity. When you plant under a Habit, your trees become part of a shared movement. Your contribution is added to the collective impact of everyone else planting for the same reason.
Examples of Planting Habits
| Habit | Purpose |
|---|---|
| #EarthDay | Plant trees for Earth Day and climate action |
| #WomensDay | Celebrate women and support equality |
| #BirthdayTrees | Gift trees for birthdays |
| #NewYear | Start the year with a positive commitment |
| #GreenFriday | Turn Black Friday into a more sustainable moment |
| #OffsetTeam | Offset your team’s impact with recurring planting |
| #OffsetProduct | Plant trees for products or orders sold |
| #InMemory | Plant trees in memory of someone |
| #ThanksForComing | Thank guests, attendees, or visitors with trees |
Key characteristics of Planting Habits
- Stable and shared. Habits aren't owned by individual users. Once created, their meaning is consistent across the platform.
- Categorized. Habits are organized into themes like Environmental Impact, Celebrations, Team Building, Client Relationships, and more.
- Aggregated. Every tree planted under a Habit contributes to a global counter, showing the collective impact of everyone planting for that cause.
- Not a service. A Habit itself isn't what you buy — it's a theme that organizes your planting activities.
What is a Planting Action?
A Planting Action is the method you use to plant under a Habit. It's the template that defines exactly how the planting happens. Note: this feature will be launched soon.
Every Action answers four questions:
- WHAT — What species? How many trees?
- WHOM — Who is the tree for? (yourself, an employee, a client, a friend)
- HOW — With what message? A pesonalized or company branding message.
- WHEN — When does it happen? (one-time, scheduled, recurring)
Examples of Planting Actions
Under the #BirthdayTrees Habit, you might find these Actions:
- "Gift a tree to the birthday person on their specific date, with yearly recurrence."
- "Gift trees to followers whose birthdays are on their profile."
Under the #OffsetProduct Habit:
- "Gift a tree per product sold via Shopify."
- "Gift a tree per purchase via WooCommerce."
Under the #WomensDay Habit:
- "Give a tree to every woman in your company, with yearly recurrence."
- "Plant trees in projects supporting equality."
Key characteristics of Planting Actions
- Linked to a single Habit. Every Action belongs to exactly one Habit. This ensures clarity of purpose and contributes to the growth of the Planting Habit´s evolution.
- Adoptable templates. When you find an Action that fits your goals, you can adopt it with just a few configuration choices.
- Can be automated. Many Actions can recur on a schedule or trigger automatically (e.g., for each new customer, each employee birthday, each sale).
- Structured and reusable. Instead of starting from scratch every time, you pick an Action and customize it to your needs.
How Habits and Actions work together
Here's the relationship in practice:
↓
"#WomensDay — celebrate women, support equality."
↓
PLANTING ACTIONS (the HOW, multiple options)
-"Plant a tree for every woman on your team."
- "Plant in projects supporting equality."
- "Schedule recurring plantings every March 8."
↓
MY ACTION (your personalized, activated version)
"Plant 750 trees in the Madagascar project every March 8,
with message: 'Celebrating the women who make our company thrive.'"
Two ways to start planting
Tree-Nation supports two journeys depending on how you approach planting:
Option 1: Quick Plant
Best for: "I just want to plant a tree right now."
- Click "Plant a Tree Now" on the homepage
- Species pre-selected, one tree by default
- Customize if you want, or just proceed
- Checkout and done — your tree is planted
After your tree is planted, we may invite you to give it meaning by adopting a Habit.
Option 2: Plant with Purpose (Habit-driven)
Best for: "I know why I want to plant, and I want it to match a theme."
- Browse the Habit Library by category
- Find a Habit that resonates with you (e.g., #EarthDay, #NetZeroTeam)
- Choose an Action under that Habit
- Customize the template (recipient, message, frequency)
- Activate the Action — it's now part of your ongoing impact
Planting Habit categories
Browse Habits by these categories to find one that fits your goals:
| Category | Example Habits | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Act for the Planet | #EarthDay, #ClimateAction, #Biodiversity, #OffsetCitizen | Climate-focused individuals & companies |
| Celebrate with Trees | #BirthdayTrees, #WeddingForest, #Christmas | Life moments, gifts, milestones |
| Grow with Your Team | #NewHire, #OffsetTeam, #WorkAnniversary | HR, employee engagement |
| Build Lasting Partnerships | #NewCustomer, #ThanksForComing, #GreenPartnership | B2B client relationships |
| Share Gratitude & Care | #ThankYouTree, #FriendshipTrees, #InMemory | Personal appreciation, tributes |
| For Every Transaction | #OffsetProduct, #ShipmentOffset, #BookingForest | E-commerce, subscriptions |
| Mood & Emotion | #Hope, #Kindness, #Healing | Personal expression, wellbeing |
Where to find seasonal and monthly Planting Habits
Many of the initiatives are available as Days & Seasons Planting Habits.
These include seasonal, national, and international events such as:
- #EarthDay
- #WomensDay
- #NewYears
- #GreenFriday
- #ValentinesDay
- #ChristmasTrees
- #WorldWaterWeek
- #PlasticFree
- #WorldCleanupDay
Should I join an existing Habit or create a new one?
In most cases, it is better to join an existing Habit.
Joining an existing Habit means your trees contribute to a larger movement. Your impact appears alongside other individuals, companies, and organizations planting for the same cause or occasion.
You can still personalize your own tree posts, images, messages, and planting setup. The Habit simply connects your trees to a shared purpose.
Creating a new Habit may make sense if your initiative is very specific and no existing Habit fits your goal. Before creating one, browse the Habit Library to see if there is already a close match.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Can I adopt multiple Habits? A: Yes. Most users adopt several Habits covering different parts of their life or business (e.g., a company might use #OffsetTeam for operations, #NewCustomer for marketing, and #EarthDay for annual campaigns).
Q: What's the difference between a Habit and an Action? A: A Habit is the theme (why you're planting). An Action is the template (how you plant). Think of the Habit as a category and the Action as a specific recipe within that category.
Q: Can I create my own Habit? A: Yes, any user can create a custom Habit. However, only approved Habits (by Tree-Nation) will be featured on the official Habits page with full marketing pages. Custom Habits are visible on the platform but without the dedicated marketing page.
Q: What languages are Habits available in? A: Habit and Action pages are live-translated into English, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and German.
Q: Do I need to use a Habit to plant a tree? A: No. You can plant trees without a Habit via Quick Plant. Habits simply add meaning and help you organize your ongoing impact.
Q: Can Habits be edited or removed? A: Official Habits are stable — their meaning doesn't change once created. You can stop participating in a Habit at any time, but the Habit itself remains in the library.
Q: Are Habits and Actions only for companies? A: No. Individuals, companies, and organizations can all use Habits and Actions. Some Habits are designed for personal moments (birthdays, tributes), others for business (clients, employees, transactions).
Getting started
- Explore the Habit Library — Browse by category to find Habits that resonate with you
- Pick an Action — Each Habit has templates to fit different situations
- Customize and activate — Choose your trees, recipients, message, and timing
- Track your impact — See your contribution to the Habit alongside the global community
Questions about setting up an Action for your company? Contact our team