Arbor Day
Overview
Arbor Day is a holiday in which individuals and groups are encouraged to plant and care for tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...

s. It originated in Nebraska City, Nebraska
Nebraska City, Nebraska
Nebraska City is a city in Otoe County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 7,228 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Otoe County...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 during 1872 by J. Sterling Morton
Julius Sterling Morton
Julius Sterling Morton was a Nebraska editor who served as President Grover Cleveland's Secretary of Agriculture. He was a prominent Bourbon Democrat, taking the conservative position on political, economic and social issues, and opposing agrarianism...

. The first Arbor Day was held on April 10, 1872, and an estimated 1 million trees were planted that day.

Many countries now observe a similar holiday. Though usually observed in the spring, the date varies, depending on climate
Climate
Climate encompasses the statistics of temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and other meteorological elemental measurements in a given region over long periods...

 and suitable planting season.

Birdsey Northrop of Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...

 was responsible for globalizing it when he visited Japan in 1883 and delivered his Arbor Day and Village Improvement message.
Quotations

Other holidays repose upon the past; Arbor Day proposes for the future.

J. Sterling Morton

Each generation takes the Earth as trustees. We ought to bequeath to posterity as many forests and orchards as we have exhausted and consumed.

J. Sterling Morton, 1887.

Trees are amazing and beautiful.

Kevin L. Farr

 
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