Orlando – Arbor Day is a holiday that is dedicated to celebrating all things in nature. The day is observed by planting a tree or cleaning up areas littered with trash. Ever wonder why? We dug up a few fun facts to help explain.
Arbor Day depends on where you live?
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Arbor Day is celebrate on the last Friday of April, but did you know there are some places that observe this holiday on a different day? Some states observe the holiday based on the local planting times. For example, Alaska celebrates the day on the third Monday in May while Hawaii is the first Friday in November. Maine celebrates the full third week in May and Oregon celebrates the entire month of April.
Arbor Day dates back to the 1800s!
This year marks 150 years of celebrating Arbor Day. The first celebration was April 10th, 1872 in Nebraska City, Nebraska. The date was later changed to April 22nd to honor Julius Morton who we talk about in a little bit. Nearly 20 years later it was an official holiday in almost every state. Delaware was the last state to join. On the first Arbor Day celebration, thousands of city citizens turned out for the big party complete with a parade. According to the Farmer’s Almanac, nearly one million trees were planted on this day.
Whose idea was this anyway?
Julius Sterling Morton was the mastermind behind nature’s holiday. Morton and his wife moved to the Nebraska territory from Michigan shortly after they were married in 1854. They moved to an area that had no trees. Over the years Morton planted thousands of trees on the vast 160 acres they owned. Everything from apple trees to cottonwoods and evergreens could be found on the Morton ranch.
This tree enthusiast didn’t stop there. Morton encouraged others to plant trees and even gave agricultural advice in the many speeches he gave. In 1893, he was appointed U.S. Secretary of Agriculture by President Grover Cleveland. He also served on the Nebraska State Board of Agriculture and the State Horticultural Society. Prior to these accomplishments, Morton was a journalist and even the acting governor of the Nebraska territory from 1858-1861.
On April 27, 1902, Morton passed away at the age of 70. His family home is now a state park in Nebraska that boasts over 250 varieties of trees and shrubs on the now 65 acres. Even the home grew! What started out as a four-bedroom home is now a mansion with 52 rooms. There’s even a statue of Morton in the National Hall of Fame in Washington, D.C.
The big name debate.
Naming a holiday can come with its fair share of obstacles. In this case, Arbor Day, was almost called Sylvan Day. Why? Sylvan means wooded. While that sounded like the most reasonable name to use, Morton didn’t agree with the state board of agriculture. He argued that the name sylvan only referred to forest trees and that using Arbor Day would include a wider variety of trees from the forest and fruit trees. Guess Morton proved his point!