By Don Steen
Staff Writer n [email protected]
With Arbor Day less than a month away, many residents are looking to spruce up the properties where they’ve put down roots. While patience is usually the name of the game when it comes to tree rearing, this planting season is off to a racing start.
The Spencer County Soil and Water Conservation District hosted a free tree sapling giveaway Monday, March 24. These saplings, ranging from one to two years old, were provided by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources Forestry Division.
The giveaway was open only to Spencer County residents. There were more than 600 saplings, including Red Oak, Shumard Oak, Black Walnut, Tulip, Swamp Chestnut Oak and White Oak.
One might think there would be some trees left over after a one-day giveaway, localized entirely within the county, with hundreds of saplings on offer. Those saplings wound up making like a tree, as the old bon mot goes.
Jessica Bender and Ava Springstun of the conservation district were hard at work throughout the day assisting visitors. Many of those who came for trees knew exactly what they were looking for, according to Springstun. In fact, many came in seeking multiple saplings.
By midday, about 30 people had come and gone taking 10 trees each with them, the maximum allowed per household. Taken together with less substantial requests, the district office quickly cleared out by the afternoon.
“We’ve had a great turnout,” said Bender.
Those who paid the office a visit last week ran the gamut from farmers needing good trees for windbreaks and erosion control to homeowners with a backyard that needed a little life. Some trends did emerge among preferred tree species, however.
Oaks were particularly popular, with Swamp Chestnut Oak running out quickly. Red and White Oaks were also quick to go, though Shumard Oaks were a bit more obscure to visitors at first. Tulip trees were also quite popular.
Black Walnuts were among the last to run out, but not for lack of trying. While some might find falling walnuts a hassle, there were plenty of people who saw them as a prize and were willing to put in the work and time to get them.
This is the first year that the local SWCD has held a free sapling giveaway, and the success of the event makes a repeat likely. Bender and Springstun hope to have more saplings in stock for the next go around, especially with species that were particularly popular.
Those who missed out last week won’t have to wait long for another opportunity for some free trees, at least of the red oak variety. Seedlings from Vallonia Nursery will be available at the Santa Claus Museum and Village from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, April 26. A naturalist from Lincoln State Park will be on hand to share information on proper care. SCWD will also offer free soil sample kits that day.
Arbor Day will be observed Friday, April 25. The holiday has been observed in the United States since April 10, 1872, when an estimated one million trees were planted across the country.
In 2020, former Governor Eric Holcomb directed the DNR to plant one million trees across Indiana over the course of his second term. Holcomb planted a cucumber magnolia in Clark State Forest as the ceremonial millionth tree to mark the completion of that initiative on April 26, 2024.
While most of the state was deforested during the 19th Century, the DNR now estimates that the state is home to 4.8 million acres of forestland.
Featured Image: Jessica Bender of the Spencer County Soil and Water Conservation District hands over a bundle of saplings to Courtney Phillips, one of many local residents who stopped by to get a head start on Arbor Day. In back is Ava Springstun of the SWCD.
