On Thursday, Feb. 11 the Lowndes County Soil and Water Conservation District will give away trees in observance of Arbor Day, which is officially Feb. 12 for Mississippi. The day is annually dedicated to tree planting.
Young trees will be available locally at the USDA Service Center Natural Resources Conservation Service Office at 2282 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in Columbus, said Mississippi State University Extension Agent Reid Nevins. Pickup hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
“This is one of the holidays where we can look back into the past and look forward to the future and the growth and benefits that newly-planted trees give us — clean air, clean water, wood, paper, lower energy bills, food and wildlife habitat,” said Nevins. “They also capture carbon out of the atmosphere and offer hundreds of other benefits as well.”
The history of Arbor Day dates back to the earliest days of civilization, when people planted trees to beautify their surroundings and help provide shade for themselves and livestock.
In section 5, chapter 161 of the 1926 Mississippi Code, state and county boards of education were directed to set aside a special day each year in the public schools for ornamentals and shade trees to be placed around school grounds. Later, the second Friday in February was officially adopted as the day on which Mississippi would observe Arbor Day.
For more information about the tree giveaway in Lowndes County, contact the USDA/NRCS office, 662-328-5921, extension 3.
Jan Swoope is the Lifestyles Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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