National Arbor day

National Arbor day is day dedicated to the celebration of trees, their qualities, and their benefits to the natural environment. Although the UK doesn’t officially celebrate Arbor Day it is celebrated by many countries around the world including China, Australia and Canada. In the USA Arbor day is celebrated on the last Friday in April every year and includes the planting of new trees and placing emphasis on the importance of trees. Here I will introduce some facts about Arbor day and also talk about why trees are so important.

When did Arbor Day begin?

Arbor Day began in the USA when pioneers first moved into Nebraska and noted the lack of trees which they needed as resources but they also missed the beauty of being surrounded by trees. A Nebraska newspaper editor who had a significant interest in trees advocated for the growth of trees when he become secretary of the Nebraska territory and introduced the concept of national Arbor Day in 1872. Rewards were offered to those who managed to plant the most trees, in 1885 Arbor Day was certified as a state holiday which was then followed by other states and today is celebrated in all states in the US. It has spread to communities all around the world who hope for a cleaner and more sustainable future.

Why celebrate Arbor Day?

Above all else Arbor Day is about hope for a sustainable world for future generations. Key in the message of the celebration is the thought that trees provide multiple benefits from improving soil health to providing habitats and cleaning the air that we breath. It is also thought that trees have a major economic benefit attracting tourism, improving house prices, reducing energy costs for air conditioning which are all signals of sustainable development. In the official proclamation of Arbor Day included is the promise to plant trees to ‘gladden’ the hearts of future generations, which is intertwined closely with the notion of loving and nurturing the land in order to improve life on Earth. Arbor Day seeks to promote a good cause and perhaps this gives you the encouragement to think about the importance of the Arbor foundations activities.

Importance of trees

Trees are the biggest plants on the planet, researchers have described the economic and environmental importance to humans but also the aesthetic, spiritual and historic importance. Trees help meet the needs of people and therefore represent a crucially influential product of nature which needs protecting, with projections of an ever warmer future climate trees may provide some protection as significant carbon sinks. It was even suggested in a 2016 documentary that trees have the ability to communicate using neural networks which travel throughout their root systems! Arbor Day reflects this requirement and acts as a reminder to cherish trees and care for them in sustainable ways.

Hopefully this investigation into what Arbor Day celebrates and why it is important has helped to unlock a newfound interest in the importance of trees and maybe you will even do something yourself to contribute to helping trees flourish!