How Are You Celebrating Arbor Day?

Much like Earth Day, Arbor Day is a holiday that celebrates nature.

National Arbor Day is always celebrated on the last Friday in April, but many states observe Arbor Day on different dates throughout the year based on best tree planting times in their area.

For instance, Hawaii celebrates it on the first Friday of November, and Alaskans celebrate it on the third Monday in May.

California’s Arbor Day is recognized on March 7, which is horticulturalist Luther Burbank’s birthday. Burbank developed more than 800 varieties of fruits, flowers and vegetables over his career in California.

After he grew 20,000 little prune trees, or seedlings, in only nine months, Californian farmers began calling him the “Plant Wizard.”

Arbor Day occurs this year on Friday, April 29. Dedicate a tree to someone who is special to you, and check out these facts about the day and the man who founded it.

“Other holidays repose upon the past;
Arbor Day proposes for the future.”

–J. Sterling Morton

Much like Earth Day, it is a holiday that celebrates nature.

Its purpose is to encourage people to plant trees, and many communities traditionally take the opportunity to organize tree-planting and litter-collecting events on or around the holiday.

A popular  tradition is to plant a tree in honor or memory of a loved one.

The idea for the day sprouted from the mind of a zealous tree lover named Julius Sterling Morton, who had a passion for planting all kinds of trees.

The first Arbor Day occurred on April 10, 1872, in Nebraska City, Nebraska. It’s estimated that nearly one million trees were planted on this day, according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac.

By 1885, Arbor Day had become a legal holiday in Nebraska. (The date was changed to April 22 to honor Morton’s birthday, which was also the 22nd of April.) On that day, thousands of Nebraska City citizens turned out for one big party, including 1,000 school-children who formed a parade.

Within 20 years of its creation, the holiday was celebrated in every American state except Delaware, which eventually joined in.

Particularly pleasing to Morton was the fact that schools across the country began celebrating Arbor Day by dedicating the trees they planted to special people.