Arbor Day Column for the Salisbury Post

Darrell Blackwelder

March 10, 2004

 

 

     There’s now a bit of Johnny Appleseed growing in Rowan County. Junior Master Gardeners planted a Johnny Appleseed apple tree to kick off Arbor Day school programs sponsored by the Rowan County Master Gardeners, this week. The tree is planted behind Horizons Unlimited in Salisbury for all the students to enjoy. This apple tree is actually a grafted cultivar from the last known living apple tree planted by Johnny Appleseed in Ohio.

Rowan County Master Gardener Volunteer Association procured the Johnny Appleseed apple tree from a Florida nursery specializing in historic trees. Master Gardener Volunteers are busy preparing for Arbor Day programs in the schools the week of March 15-19.  Over 1700 students receive a pine seedling tree as part of the educational program in which students learn about growth and the benefits of trees.  Spearheaded by Master Gardener volunteer Scott Rhodes, all 3^rd graders in Rowan County including private schools will participate in this program.

Johnny Appleseed whose real name was John Chapman was not just a leg­end but also a clever nurseryman. In the early 1800’s he started a nursery using apple seeds collected from Pennsylvania cider presses. A trained nurseryman, Chapman anticipated the great westward migration and planted, sold, or gave away millions of seeds throughout the upper Midwest.

Arbor Day in North Carolina is always the first Friday following of March 15; so Arbor Day in North Carolina this year is March 19^th. National Arbor Day is always the last Friday in April.

 In 1872 J. Sterling Morton proposed to the Nebraska Board of Agriculture that a special day be set aside for the planting of trees. This holiday, called Arbor Day, was first observed with the planting of more than a million trees in Nebraska.

Arbor Day is now observed throughout the nation and the world. Trees can reduce the erosion of our precious topsoil by wind and water, cut heating and cooling costs, moderate the temperature, clean the air, produce life-giving oxygen, and provide habitat for wildlife. Trees are a renewable resource giving us paper, wood for our homes, fuel for our fires, and beautify our community. Trees, wherever they are planted, are a source of joy and spiritual renewal. For more information about Arbor Day, visit the web site at webwww.arborday.org

 

Darrell Blackwelder is an agricultural agent in charge of horticulture with the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service in Rowan County. For archived garden columns or other information, visit the Rowan County Master Gardener web site at www.rowanmastergardener.com , e-mail Darrell_Blackwelder@ncsu.edu or phone at 704-633-0571.