Plant a Tree for Arbor Day

Before there was Earth Day, there was Arbor Day. In 1872, Arbor Day was established in Nebraska by agriculturist Julius Sterling Morton, who believed that trees were important asset for any region. Amazingly, over 1,000,000 trees were said to have been planted during that first celebration. Since the nineteenth century, Arbor Day has become a national holiday (now celebrated on the last Friday in April) and has even spread to other countries around the world. Today, concerns about global warming give us more reason than ever to celebrate and promote trees, since healthy forests are instrumental in processing greenhouse gasses and maintaining a healthy temperature for the planet. Of course, the most popular method of celebrating Arbor Day is by planting your own trees. If you've got some yard to spare, Peaceful Valley has an excellent selection of organic tree stock, including many fruit- and nut-bearing varieties (although unfortunately their selection is much, much better in the late summer and fall). If you don't have that kind of space or don't feel like getting your hands dirty, the environmental benefits of tree planting can still be yours through the Be Green website, which allows customers to have trees planted at ecologically sensitive sites, as gifts for a variety of occasions from Mothers' Day to weddings. It's never too late to plant a tree, but if you celebrated Arbor Day this year you're in good company. Here's a slideshow of celebrities joining in (including the image above) by way of the Huffington Post.