Observing Arbor Day
Arbor Day is the annual day of celebration of trees worldwide. It serves the purpose
of caring for, learning about, and growing trees. It was first celebrated in
1872 in Nebraska however, the famous tree planting events and festivals are
recorded as having existed since ancient times. It was ironically the huge lack
of trees in Nebraska that eventually inspired the formal celebration of the
day. It was in 1872 that the State Board of Agriculture in Nebraska put into
effect an idea by Sterling Morton to celebrate Arbor Day. In order to encourage
its citizens to participate the board offered incentives and prizes to the parties
which successfully planted the most trees.
On the first official arbor day in 1872 over 1 million trees were successfully planted. What makes Arbor Day so unique is the emphasis it has not on the past, but on the future. Most holidays place significance on events from the past whereas Arbor Day places
significance the future. Within 50 years of the original Arbor Day over 45 states in the United States had passed legislation to spread Arbor Day into their own borders. Although the United
States legally celebrated Arbor Day first, it is not the only country that
does.