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  • NEWSROOM: 2017 TEXAS ARBOR DAY HOST CITY ANNOUNCED

    April 28, 2017 — COLLEGE STATION, Texas — In Texas, the official state Arbor Day celebration is held in a different host city each year on the first Friday in November. Today, on National Arbor Day, Texas A&M Forest Service revealed that this year’s state celebration will be hosted in Grand Prairie, Texas.

    Across the Lone Star State, Texans are invited to join the celebration Nov. 3, 2017 at Grand Central Park.  

    Grand Prairie, the 15th largest city in the state, has a deep appreciation for trees dating back a century ago when pecan orchards flourished in the area. Today, with old growth pecan trees still dotting the urban forest, the city spends more than $4 per capita on trees each year.

    “Grand Prairie is a great site for Texas State Arbor Day.  We take pride that we are the second oldest Tree City, USA in the state of Texas, and even though we are growing rapidly, we’re going above and beyond to protect our existing tree canopy and increasing our urban forest,” said Susan Henson, Arborist of the City of Grand Prairie.  “It’s important for us to put on a TreeEpic event to show how the urban forest of Texas cherishes their trees.”

    The celebration is aptly themed TreeEpic because Grand Prairie is opening the largest indoor water park with a retractable roof, an intergenerational recreation center and one of the largest adaptive playground sites in United States. When Grand Central Park was prepared for construction, more than 150 existing trees were moved to different locations on the site.  An additional 250 trees were planted at Grand Central Park to enhance the site and increase the existing tree canopy, and more trees will be planted in the future.

    Festivities will feature a ceremony, educational activities, tree plantings, giveaways, 1,000 fourth and fifth-grade performers, the eclectic folk/rock band Trout Fishing in America, the Grand Prairie ISD Mariachi band and drumline, a kite-flying demonstration and much more. All events are free and open to the public.

    For those unable to attend the state celebration, Texas A&M Forest Service invites you to celebrate Arbor Day in your own ways, in your own communities.

    “The idea is for everyone in Texas to take one day – the same day – to truly appreciate trees and plant one,” said Paul Johnson Texas A&M Forest Service urban and community forestry program coordinator. “Planting a tree leaves a legacy for future generations while beautifying the spaces where we live, work and play today.”

    Texas A&M Forest Service is making it easy for anyone, anywhere to participate in Arbor Day. We’ve provided tips online to help you create a memorable Arbor Day in your own community, and fun, educational activities for schools, groups and families to get outdoors and learn more about trees.

    Visit http://texasforestservice.tamu.edu/arborday/ for ideas on how to host an Arbor Day ceremony. Here you can also find instructions on how to properly plant a tree and activities about the benefits of trees, tree parts and how to identify a tree by its leaves or structure – plus so much more.
     
    About Texas Arbor Day: Under the leadership of the Texas Forestry Association, Texas first observed Arbor Day in 1889, celebrating the benefits that trees provide over a lifetime.
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