UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY
COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE
Lexington, Kentucky 40546-0091
COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE

Kentucky's Outdoor Classroom Newsletter

Department of Forestry
April 2001

Spring is here!  A time when plants and trees sprout new leaves, flowers appear, birds migrate, and many animals emerge from hibernation.  An important day is coming up…Arbor Day.  This day is a great opportunity for your students to learn more about trees and the environment!

ARBOR DAY!

Kentucky's Arbor Day is celebrated on April 6th, 2001 (the first Friday in April)!

· Arbor means 'tree' in Latin. This day has been set aside for the planting and caring of trees.
· 1st Arbor Day was celebrated in Nebraska on April 10th, 1872. This day was set aside to encourage Nebraskans to plant trees to beautify and enrich the treeless state.

Visit the Arbor Day Web site www.arborday.org, or the for free booklets and information about Arbor Day contests for your students. For local information check out the Kentucky Division of Forestry site www.nr.state.ky.us/nrepc/dnr/forestry/dnrdof.html
 

Trees may be the most important and useful plants on our earth. They provide us with oxygen we need to breathe, clean water that's vital to all living things, food for both animals and people, wood that we depend on for houses, furniture, and paper products--not to mention the oasis of shade on a steamy summer day.

Plant A Tree Today!

Trees clean our water!
Trees fight climate change!
Forests are the world's second largest carbon reservoirs after oceans.
Trees + Light = Air, it is estimated that 1 acre of forest land produces about 4 tons of oxygen a year, enough for 18 people!
Trees are cool! a well positioned shade tree can keep a house 20% cooler in the summer.
The Food We Eat, it takes 30-40 gallons of sap from the sugar maple tree to make just 1 gallon of maple syrup
Animals need trees! Trees shelter and nourish wildlife.
Trees and Our Games, the wood of the white ash tree (common tree in Kentucky) is used to make baseball bats such as the famed "Louisville Slugger".
Trees save money! City trees reduce the cost of controlling storm water, reduces home energy use, and improves property values!

How to Plant a Tree

1. When to plant - trees can planted in Spring (while tree is still dormant) or Fall (after leaf fall).
2. Dig a hole large enough for all the roots to fit below ground level.
3. Put a shallow layer of topsoil in the hole.
4. Set the tree so that the roots are all in the hole, but not too deep.
5. Cover the roots with topsoil, peat moss, or subsoil mixed with humus.
6. Pack firmly.
7. Water well; add mulch.
(For more resource information or assistance with planting a tree contact your County
Extension Agent and ask for Pub. # 4DF-03PA "Ky. 4-H Forestry Project, Planting Trees")
 
Famous Trees
  • Kentucky's largest tree is a sycamore on Grassy Creek in Montgomery County - 35 feet and 3 ½ inches in circumference!
  • Kentucky's tallest tree is a yellow-poplar (our state tree) in the Beaver Creek area of McCreary County - 174 feet tall!
  • Charter Oak in Hartford, Connecticut--the charter of the Connecticut colony was hidden there!
  • General Stewart Sequoia in Sequoia National Park, California--the oldest and biggest tree in the park, it's wide enough for a camper truck to drive through!
  • Do you have any special trees around your school?
Suggested Activities For 
Arbor Day and Every Day

Project Learning Tree Activities

Plant a Tree (Grades 1-8, outdoor)
Trees as Habitats (Grades 3-8, outdoor/indoor)
Resource-Go-Round (Grades 4-8, indoor)
Nature's Recyclers (Grades 1-6, indoor)
Every Tree for Itself (Grades K-8, indoor)
Air Plants (Grades 3-6, indoor)
Trees in Trouble (Grades 1-8, outdoor/indoor)
 
Books and Trees
  • A Forest is Reborn. James R. Newton
  • A Tree Is Growing. Arthur Dorros
  • Crinkleroot's Guide To Knowing The Trees. Jim Arnosky
  • The Eastern Forest. Eileen Fielding

Become a Tree City! There are 26 tree cities in Kentucky; is your city one of them? Every community benefits, regardless of the size of your community. For more information on how your community can become a tree city Call (402) 474-5655 or email at treecity@arborday.org


Upcoming Special Events

Project Learning Tree Workshop - (June 21, 2001) Maywoods in Berea. Contact Evelyn Morgan (606)784-6428.

American Wetlands Month - May 2001
www.iwla.org/sos/awm

Connections Between Math, Science and the Environment, Across the Curriculum - (June 22-28, 2001). Land Between the Lakes. Contact Joe Baust (270) 762-2595 or Terry Wilson (270) 745-4424.

National Wildlife Week - (April 16-22) "Explore Nature In Your Neighborhood" www.nwf.org

Reading the Licking River
Summer 2001
A Workshop for Science Teachers
A workshop conducted by Morehead State University and Northern Kentucky University .
Topics - participants will be engaged in hands-on learning in water quality, geology, aquatic biology, botany and threatened species.
Who can participate - 5th-12th grade science teachers in the 19 county Licking River Watershed.
When and Where - June 17th-June 22nd.  Along the Licking River from its origins in Magoffin County to its confluence with the Ohio River.
Stipends/Course Credit - each participant completing the workshop will receive a $400.00 stipend.  MSU and NKU will offer the course for 3.0 credit hours with tuition reimbursement available.
Accommodations - (Food and lodging will be provided) at Morehead State University, Bluelicks Battlefield State Park and in Northern Kentucky.
Resources You Will Receive - each participant will receive $200.00 of classroom supplies including water monitoring kits, field guides, books, and classroom activities.
For Information and Application:
www.nku.edu/~scienceed/
or
contact Lorna Harrell, Coordinator, NKU
(859) 572-6032

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Laurie Taylor Doug McLaren
Cooperative Extension Cooperative Extension
University of Kentucky University of Kentucky
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ltaylor@ca.uky.edu dmclaren@ca.uky.edu