During 2015, the city of Melbourne came up with a clever idea: give each of its 70,000 trees a unique ID number and an email address. The practical goal was to help citizens report fallen branches, damaged trees or tree-related trouble. Each tree’s email was linked to a database, making maintenance a breeze.

But then something adorable happened. People didn’t simply send emails to report issues; they wrote to the trees. They sent love letters, shared life updates and checked in on their leafy friends. One particularly lucky elm received a sweet note: "I hope you're doing well this autumn!"

Instead of shutting down the program, the city leaned into the fun and turned it into a PR success. Some emails even got replies (although Melbourne’s city employees might wish the trees could type the responses.)

Of course, these trees aren’t actually scrolling through their inboxes, but that hasn’t stopped people from sending a little love to their favorite branches!