Ashley Hunter
ECB Publishing, Inc.
Since its birth in 1872, Arbor Day has been a time for people, schools, organizations and civic clubs to reflect on the importance of trees within our communities.
Trees, by taking in carbon dioxide, improve air quality and release oxygen – which everyone knows is crucial to our survival.
Trees do a lot more than simply grow, produce oxygen and provide shelter or food – they also grow food and produce fuel. Areas with trees benefit from reduced energy costs and boosted property values for homeowners.
According to the Arbor Day Foundation, planting trees around homes and businesses help those locations save in energy consumption – therefore cutting costs when it comes time to pay the electric bill.
Additionally, having lush, beautiful trees on your property can help raise your property value, especially in residential or city areas.
For the past 32 years, Monticello has been a member of Tree City USA – an organization that is a branch of the Arbor Day Foundation. Cities in this designation are part of the “greening up” movement that encourages planting and preserving trees and other greenery in their communities.
There are over 3,000 cities and communities across the nation that are part of this movement, and each one has practiced their own, unique ways of observing arbor day annually.
Outside of taking part in the Arbor Day festivities planned by the City of Monticello, there are plenty of ways to become involved in recognizing Arbor Day this year.
For example, find time to simply enjoy and admire the trees around you. This can be through simply sitting outdoors with a book, art project or craft and simply spending times in the outdoors.
You could also organize a tree identification hike. Visit arborday.org/trees/whattree and take a group of friends or family out into the local forest in order to explore and identify some of the local tree varieties that fill our woodlands.
Make sure to document your findings!
But, the best way to celebrate Arbor Day, is by planting a tree yourself.
You will be doing more than simply planting a tree – you will be bettering the world for generations to come.
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