Planting trees in February?

When in search of mediocrity in print, I generally turn to my hometown newspaper The Northeast Georgian. The article I ended up with isn't actually terrible, but several things could be improved to make it a better story. The first thing I'd consider changing is the title--while technically accurate, the word "crowd" implies spectators to me, but in this context they're participants.

The most glaring mistake in the story shows up in the second paragraph: "City of Clarkesville Gardens and Grounds Superintendent Charl/ Statler" is obviously a mistake. The error may only be in the online version of the story, but it exists nonetheless. On the City of Clarkesville website, his name is listed as "Charle' Statler." At least the paper got his title right.

The wording of the third paragraph also felt slightly off: "On Thursday and Friday, city workers made ready digging holes and placed the heavy trees alongside new digs." I wasn't sure if "new digs" was supposed to mean homes or freshly-dug holes. Either way, I found it confusing and awkward, and would reword the sentence to something like "On Thursday and Friday, city workers made ready digging holes and placed the heavy trees alongside them."

The rest of the article was error-free, but I think it passed up an opportunity to expand the story and make it more interesting. The reporter didn't interview any of the 50 volunteers who showed up to plant trees. We don't know if they showed up for community service, for fun, or for the free lunch! I'd also be interested to know if the city has sponsored events like this in the past. Do they annually plant trees along the highway? Do citizens usually participate? Is it a purehearted environmental activity, or are they offsetting trees that have been cut down for lumber in other parts of the county?

The content of the story is functional as it is, but more context could've linked an isolated incident with something more detailed and interesting.