Arbor Day

The first Arbor Day was started in Nebraska in 1872 by Julius Sterling Morton. Morton was a New York native, University of Michigan graduate, journalist, and politician who served as President Grover Cleveland’s Secretary of Agriculture. Nebraskans planted over 1 million trees that first year and it was declared an official U.S. holiday 13 years later in 1885.

Arbor Day, the day we celebrate trees, is a U.S. holiday officially observed in Ohio (and 18 other states) on the last Friday in April, but it is celebrated in other states and countries on dates better suited for those regions growing seasons.

The whole idea of Arbor Day is to educate the public on the benefits of trees and to encourage tree planting. Why plant trees, you ask:

• Tree roots hold soil in place. This reduces erosion and runoff.
• Trees remove CO2 (carbon dioxide) from the air, store it, and release oxygen back into the air. They also remove other greenhouse gases, pollutants, and particulates from the air.
• Trees provide food for humans and wildlife and habitats for many organisms.
• Trees planted close to a home or office building can dramatically cut cooling costs.
• Trees break up urban heat islands and can cool a city by 10 degrees Fahrenheit.

There are plenty of other perfectly good reasons to plant a tree or lots of trees if you wish. Visit these links to learn more about why trees are so important to our health and the health of our planet.
www.treelink.org/docs/29_reasons.phtml
www.treelink.org/linx/factoid.php