Trees! They’re beautiful. They’re useful. They’re the longest living organisms on the planet. This year annual Arbor Day is a time to come together to celebrate one of earth's greatest resources.
How it All Began
Arbor Day has its “roots” in tree planting festivals that date back centuries but it was first formally observed as a holiday in 1872. It originated in Nebraska with a man named Julius Sterling Morton one of the original “tree huggers” you could say. “He encouraged everyone to set aside a specific day to plant trees. In 1872, the State Board of Agriculture accepted a resolution by J. Sterling Morton to set aside one day to plant trees, both forest and fruit. The Board declared April 10 Arbor Day and offered prizes to the counties and individuals that properly planted the largest number of trees on that day. More than one million trees were planted in Nebraska on the first Arbor Day.”-Arbor Day Foundation
The Spread of Arbor Day
By 1920 there were more than 45 states celebrating Arbor Day. Today we celebrate it across the United States.
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Did You Know?-According to the Arbor Day Foundation many countries around the globe celebrate their own form of Arbor Day including:
New Year’s Day of the Trees in Israel
Tree-Loving Week in Korea
Afforestation Day in Iceland
Both Arbor Day in the spring and an Afforestation Day in the fall in Yugoslavia
National Festival of Tree Planting in India
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For years Arbor Day was celebrated on Morton’s birthday April 22 now it’s celebrated on the last Friday in April. This year Arbor Day is on April 27, 2018. Although Arbor Day is officially the last Friday in April, many states celebrate it on different dates throughout the year according to the best tree planting times. Click Here to see when your state observes Arbor Day.
Get Involved
So how can you get involved and celebrate Arbor Day in your own way? A simple and easy way is to plant a tree of your own. Find out how here. You can also look for Arbor Day events in your own area. Can’t find any? Host your own Arbor Day celebration in your neighborhood. Find some useful celebration materials here
“Arbor Day ... which has already transplanted itself ... to every state in the American Union and has even been adopted in foreign lands … is not like other holidays. Each of those reposes on the past, while Arbor Day proposes for the future.”-J. Sterling Morton