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Arbor Day History 

In 1872, J. Sterling Morton from Nebraska City proposed a tree planting holiday to be called Arbor Day at a meeting of the State Board of Agriculture. Prizes were offered to counties and individuals for properly planting the largest number of trees on that day. It was estimated that more than 1 million trees were planted in Nebraska on the first Arbor Day. During the 1870s, other states passed legislation to observe Arbor Day and the tradition began in schools in 1882. By 1894, Arbor Day was celebrated in every state and has now spread to other countries.

Each year the Parks & Recreation Department plans an Arbor Celebration in recognition of the holiday. Radnor Township joins forces with various community groups to plant trees around the township and celebrate the origins of Arbor Day. This year Radnor Township is proud to celebrate being a Tree City USA location for the 32nd year!

About Tree City USA

The Tree City USA program, sponsored by the Arbor Day Foundation in cooperation with the USDA Forest Service and the National Association of State Foresters, provides direction, technical assistance, public attention, and national recognition for urban and community forestry programs in thousands of towns and cities that more than 135 million Americans call home.

The benefits of being a Tree City USA community include the following:

• Trees help reduce costs for energy, storm water management, and erosion control. Trees yield up to 3 times their cost in overall benefits to the city, averaging $273 per tree.
• Trees help cut energy consumption by up to 25%. Studies indicate that as few as 3 additional trees planted around each building in the United States could save our country $2 billion, annually, in energy costs.
• Having trees boosts property values across your community. Properly placed trees can increase property values from 7-21%, and buildings in wooded areas rent more quickly and tenants stay longer.
• Trees facilitate building stronger ties to your neighborhood and community. Trees and green spaces directly correlate to greater connections to the neighborhood and neighbors.

Tree City USA Qualifications

In order to qualify as a Tree City USA community, a township must meet 4 standards established by The Arbor Day Foundation and the National Association of State Foresters. These standards were established to ensure that every qualifying community would have a viable tree management plan and program. It is important to note that they were also designed so that no community would be excluded because of size.

To qualify, the city must have:

• A tree board or department
• A tree care ordinance
• A community forestry program with an annual budget of at least $2 per capita
• An Arbor Day observance and proclamation