Today is Earth Day, a day when planting trees has been part of the ritual since it was established in the 1970's. But where did all of this tree planting begin?
As far back as the 1840's people were planting trees en mass. It was more like Arbor Day when I think about it. But when the first settlers moved to the plains of Nebraska, they found little in the way of trees for building homes or for fuel to cook and heat with. It was the Nebraska prairie dwellers who started planting trees here. If you have ever driven through Nebraska, you may wonder how a prairie state has so many trees.You can read a great blog about the History of Nebraska Tree Planting.
In 18882 Nebraska was the first to declare Arbor Day. Nebraskans are really fanatics when it comes to tree planting. It's in their blood from the first settlers to come there and start families. Earth Day was founded in 1970, and Arbor Day became a day for the environment. Appropriately, Omaha is having a lot of Celebration for this Nebraska Holiday. I am sure 2010 will be as great as it was in this 2008 article.
You can go to a link for the Arbor Day Foundation and see what is happening in your state. Join the Arbor Day Foundation and get 10 free Flowering Trees that grow in your area. Here is the North Carolina Link.
I have planted trees since I lived in Iowa and heard about those serious tree planting Nebraskans. No to be outdone, I kept it going in Iowa since the early 1970's. Now that I am in North Carolina, I plan to continue the ritual and go out today and buy a tree for my new yard. Last year when I moved here I planted several Redbuds and Dogwoods and I love them. Not sure what to get this year, but I guess I will see what is out there that grows well here.
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