New Port Richey, FL (Jan. 22, 2015) – Members of the city staff and city council, the city’s Environmental Committee, and the New Port Richey Garden Club celebrated Arbor Day in New Port Richey on Friday, Jan. 15, 2016 at 11 a.m. This was the city’s 27th consecutive year of celebrating Arbor Day, which is part of the recognition the city received in the early 90s as a “Tree City USA.”
The annual event was held at the gazebo across from Orange Lake in downtown New Port Richey to recognize the importance of trees in our environment and in our world.
Former City Council member and chair of the committee, Dell deChant, addressed event attendees with a few words about the historic and contemporary context of the event and the City’s reforestation project. Also on the program was Mayor Rob Marlowe and City Manager Debbie Manns.
The city’s Public Works department planted several new trees in celebration of Arbor Day and the city’s designation as a National Tree City USA. The new plantings included hickory and live oak trees.
In 1854 J. Sterling Morton moved from Detroit to the area that is now the state of Nebraska. At that time there were virtually no trees in the area and he and the other pioneers desired to have them in their surroundings. They also noticed that trees were needed to act as windbreaks to stabilize the soil and to provide shade from the sun, fuel and building materials. Morton planted many trees around his own home but wanted to encourage and enable others to do the same.
At a Nebraska State Board of Agriculture meeting on January 4, 1872, he proposed a holiday to plant trees on April 10, 1872. This was known as “Arbor Day” and prizes were awarded to the counties and individuals who planted the most trees on the day. A total of about one million trees were planted in Nebraska on the first Arbor Day.
All states in the the country now have an official Arbor Day, usually at a time of year that is has the correct climate for planting trees. Many observations of this day are in April, but Florida is one of nearly twenty other states that celebrates Arbor Day at different times of the year, such as January. Similar events to encourage the planting or care of trees are arranged in many countries around the world. The dates are usually chosen to coincide with the optimal season for planting or caring for native trees.
Arbor Day is symbolized by the trees that are planted on the day or as a result of fundraising activities. The official Arbor Day logo shows a mature deciduous tree and the words “celebrate Arbor Day.” The symbol of the Arbor Day Foundation is a similar tree in a circle, symbolizing the importance of trees to the whole planet. Some local initiatives use their state tree as a symbol.
