Rhode Island Tree Council
What I find especially heart warming at each tree planting ceremony is the excitement and participation of children as they join in with the planting process next to a young tree not much taller than them. The children, friends, and parents are then encouraged to return to the tree site year after year to be inspired by the growth. Their youth, as reflected in the young tree, will blossom, grow and mature, just as the tree will…to become a living legacy for them.”
Steven Pilz, Landscape Architect, RITree Arbor Day Coordinator
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Planting a Forest at Goddard Park
Arbor Day originated and was first observed in Nebraska on April 10, 1872. The plan was conceived by local business man J. Sterling Morton,“The Father of Arbor Day”, to reclaim the vast treeless expanses, of the Great Plains. The Arbor Day idea quickly spread throughout the county.
By the turn of the century it was well-established and became traditional every where. Rhode Island schools began observing Arbor Day in 1891. Each spring teachers and their pupils would conduct elaborate programs as part of the schools’ education curriculum. They would sing songs, recite poems and learn how to plant and care for the trees at Arbor Day ceremonies. This annual rite of spring ended on the 1940’s with the beginning of World War II. Over the next half- century Arbor Day lost its luster and celebrations were few and far between.
In the mid-1990’s the Rhode Island Tree Council sought to reverse this trend. With the help of volunteers, garden clubs, and civic leaders, it began to promote and sponsor the traditional observance of Arbor Day throughout Rhode Island. These efforts reached their zenith in 2002. In that year Arbor Day was celebrated by all 39 cities and towns in Rhode Island. This marvelous feat has been repeated in each of the past few years. Arbor Day is celebrated in Rhode Island on the last Friday in April. This year it will be observed on Saturday, April 26th.
RITree thanks everyone who joined us in celebrating Arbor Day in a new way: by witnessing the beginning of a forest, and by honoring the important work of arborists in Rhode Island. The Arbor Day Fair was held at Goddard Memorial State Park in Warwick, on Saturday, April 26 (the day after the State Arbor Day Celebration . The event showcased demonstrations by arborists, displays by tree-related organizations and information about proper planting and mulching methods. We also held a raffle, every hour, and gave away a free tree. We learned what it is that arborists do, and met the people who did it.
Of course, the heart of any Arbor Day celebration is tree planting, this year, we took tree planting to the next level. We worked with the staff at Goddard Memorial State Park and a team of RI arborists, with help from a small army of Tree Stewards, we planted nearly 100 trees, reforesting an area that had been cleared for decades. RITree has planted over 500 individual trees in cities and towns across the State since 1999.
Acres and acres of Rhode Island woodlands are destroyed every day, through construction and development. This was an opportunity to create an Urban Forest, and see it grow in the years ahead. Whether you come to work or to watch, it will be an inspiring day. We will be literally reshaping the landscape, and creating a model for future reforestation projects across the State.
For more on Arbor Day visit the National Arbor Day site at :