This September, we teamed up with the Arbor Day Foundation to inspire people to plant, nurture and celebrate trees. Since its foundation 50 years ago, the Foundation has grown to become the largest member nonprofit organisation dedicated to planting trees. Working with a huge network of supporters and partners, the organisation has planted and distributed nearly 500 million trees worldwide.
Read on to learn more about the organisation and how they’re helping inspire a new generation of tree-planting and eco-awareness.
Mission: Inspire people to plant, nurture and celebrate trees
The Arbor Day Foundation was founded in 1972 on the 100th anniversary of the Arbor Day holiday. The Foundation planted an estimated one million trees throughout Nebraska during that first celebration on April 10th, 1872. Today, the national Arbor Day holiday is always observed on the last Friday in April, with many states and countries celebrating their own Arbor Days at differing times depending on the region’s optimal tree planting season.
Since its inception, the Arbor Day Foundation has operated on a simple mission: to inspire people to plant, nurture and celebrate trees. Like AnswerConnect, the Foundation recognises the vitally important role trees play in forests and neighbourhoods around the world.
Not only do trees help purify the air, but they also provide wood, water and shelter to both people and animals. When planted in the right place, at the right time, trees have the power to strengthen our communities, improve our health and well-being and foster biodiversity for generations to come.
Fifty years of tree-planting
This year, the Arbor Day Foundation is celebrating having planted nearly 500 million trees across 50+ countries since its founding in 1972. With the help of its members, donors and partners, the Foundation continues to help solve our most pressing global issues through trees.
In addition to planting trees, the organisation also facilitates educational opportunities for stakeholders and communities. To help students and staff create a campus they can be proud of, the organisation offers hands-on tree planting opportunities that supplement environmental education around campus and in the classroom.
By providing a proper framework for K–12 schools, colleges and universities, the Foundation’s Tree Campus K–12 and Tree Campus Higher Education programs help grow community forests on educational campuses that will stand for future generations.
Preserving biodiversity at the Arbor Day Farm
The organisation’s 260-acre farm in Nebraska City, Nebraska, fosters opportunities for visitors to get hands-on with trees and learn more about the plethora of benefits they bring to our planet. The farm also provides a natural space for wildlife to prosper and works to preserve rare fruits and trees across its property.
The Arbor Day Farm grows several varieties of antique apples on their property including:
- Almata: With reddish flesh, this apple is beautiful but has a subtle and not altogether sweet taste.
- Claygate Pearmain: Common in Victorian-era gardens, this apple looks like a potato and has a nutty aroma.
- Kandil Sinap: This vintage apple from the 1800s originated in Turkey and is tall and cylindrical but it is crisp and juicy with a sweet and sour flavour.
- Arkansas Black: Popular in the 1840s, this apple has dark red skin but turns black when stored.
“Trees never stop giving to us”
The Arbor Day Foundation believes that “trees never stop giving to us,” and that tree planting efforts will help “answer some of humanity’s greatest challenges.”
We’re proud to partner with the Arbor Day Foundation this month. To learn more about how we’re giving back to our Planet, click here.
Images courtesy of the Arbor Day Foundation
