Some Islanders spend the Victoria Day long weekend looking to replant trees lost in Fiona

Mark Stewart spent his Sunday at Kool Breeze Farms in Summerside searching for trees to replace those that came down during post-tropical storm Fiona.

The storm hit last fall, felling countless trees across the Island. Among those were some of the large trees on Stewart's property in Malpeque.

Now, he's looking for some change in terms of the type of tree he wants to grow. He's turned to planting fruit trees such as pear and apple trees. 

"I find that they're a little bit easier to manage, and whatever limbs we have, we can use for smoker."

And he said, those types of trees are also "a little bit friendlier" for nesting birds. 

Ian Simmons, co-owner of Kool Breeze Farms, said he has seen many people like Stewart coming in looking for trees to replace those that were lost due to the storm.

CBC News also spoke with a few other tree nurseries that are seeing an increased demand from customers.

Simmons said customers are looking not only for different species of trees, but also other types of plants, since the landscape around their homes looks different in Fiona's wake. 

"Sometimes people have lost fences, so they might be coming in to put in a hedge. Some people are looking at putting in a nice flower garden because they had a big tree in that area," he said.

"People are changing what they're doing."

When choosing replacement plants, shrubs and trees, Simmons said it's important to consider several factors, including where they will be planted and whether they'll be close to salt water. 

Stewart has been thinking about some of those factors, especially location, because he has another property in Summerside, where planting shrubs instead of large trees might be more suitable, he said.

"Being in town, it makes it really difficult with the area that we're in, and the hydro lines and people's houses so close."