Blessed by an unseasonably sunny and warm day public holiday marking the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., a large group of volunteers did their bit to aid in the restoration of park and green spaces.

Eastside residents, school and university students and members of the AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps got their hands dirty for the Mountains to Sound Greenway (MTSG), volunteering at their nursery in Lake Sammamish State Park, Issaquah.

Many MTSG projects involve group of helpers planting young trees beside rivers and streams and in areas threatened by introduced species like blackberry.

But in order to get the trees to that age, they must first be nurtured from a small root. That was the job of the volunteers on Monday – taking the individual roots from the large bunches in which they are purchased from local native plant nurseries and potting them in their own container.

That group included Marian Cole and Kristin Quam of Bellevue, who have volunteered for MTSG in the past, and first-timers Joon Lee and Patty Lu of Newport High School.

University of Washington freshman Alexandra Colley volunteered for the group as part of her course’s public service requirement.

According to MTSG volunteer coordinator Margaret Ullman, these first few months are critical in ensuring the plants are strong enough to be able to survive and thrive when planted.

“We try to get all of the potting done by mid-March,” she said. “On one occasion there were some roots we didn’t get planted until April, and unfortunately we lost those. It is important that they don’t dry out.”

Indeed, the success of the entire MTSG restoration effort relies on a healthy nursery.

The greenway operates the nursery out of site owned by Washington State Parks in the Lake Sammamish State Park. When full, it holds about 24,000 young plants. At the moment the nursery has about half that amount, following a busy planting season from mid-October to December. Now it is time to fill it back up.

The plants that are potted in the next few months will remain in the nursery for one or two years, depending on the species, before being planted at one of the many MTSG project sites around Puget Sound.

Last fall, more than 1,200 volunteers planted about 20,000 trees and shrubs in ecologically critical areas, including Lake Sammamish State Park and Timberlake Park in Issaquah.

There are still many opportunities to do you part to help restore and maintain the natural resources of the Puget Sound area. Volunteers are always needed for potting and planting, as well as the occasional hand-to-hand battle against the introduced ivy which so damages our parks and waterways. School groups, work groups and sporting teams are always welcome – a great team building exercise.

For more information on MTSG projects in your area, go to www.mtsgreenway.org., phone 206-812-0122, or e-mail volunteer@mtsgreenway.org.