Plant a Tree - Event

[+Dakota Dawgs]

I have been thinking that with so many of us, spending so much time in the woods, it would be a great opportunity for all of us to give back to nature by sponsoring a plant a tree event once or twice a year. Tree saplings are cheap enough and easy to plant. Do you like the idea? Would you participate?

[+PhxChem]

Are they native species?

 

Where wpuld they be planted?

 

Just making sure....

[+Dash-2]

I think it would be cool to cooperate with a group like the BLM. Might make some good press for geocaching. The BLM would also make sure the trees are native and know how, when, and where to plant them.

 

=D

reminds me of mybabytree.org

[+briansnat]

Great idea to do this, but it probably wouldn't fly as a geocaching event because it would probably violate the "agenda" guideline. There is still nothing keeping people from bringing seedlings to hand out at an event, but

getting an event approved that is specifically meant for this might be tough to get published.

[+Isonzo Karst]

I think you could do it as a CITO event.

 

CITO events can be for most any work that a land manager wants done; we've waypointed sunken boat hulls, marked and cleared trails, waypointed nests of a protected species, all as CITO. I've seen a CITO event that restored an old cemetery (with direction by a cemetery restoration expert).

You need to start by contacting a land manager with the idea, then be sure that your event is "by geocachers for geocachers" and not using a GC.com event page to recruit people to an existing work day.

Edited May 4, 2008 by Isonzo Karst

[+themeecer]

I would say do it if it makes you feel good. If you are doing it because you fear our tree population is critically low, I would save my energy. We have more trees today (in the US at least) than we did through the first 50 years of the last century. The reason for this is because we have moved from 'deforestation' to 'clearcutting.' Deforestation is the removal of a forest with no intention of establishing a future stand of trees. Clearcutting is both "a harvest and a regeneration of the forest, and is done to improve future stand quality, growth, genetics, and species composition."

 

http://www.wvu.edu/~agexten/forestry/clrcut.htm

 

But if you really want to go plant a tree I'll place a cache in my front yard. I had a gorgeous white pine get knocked over by the wind. It passed up some ugly cedars that look out of place and got my pine. Stupid wind.

[fishdirt]

With development as bad as it is yes, there are areas that are worse off then they were 20-50 years ago. Not to mention tree disease and parasites. Here in the state of Michigan we were attacked by some bug that killed many of the white birch trees. I remember as a kid seeing them everywhere and realizing now that I haven't seen one in a long time. So not only is it a good ideal for trees in general but it'd be nice to help bring back disappearing species. Trees are also good air filters so the more the merrier!

[Dinoprophet]

Great idea to do this, but it probably wouldn't fly as a geocaching event because it would probably violate the "agenda" guideline.

Not to mention the "digging with a pointy object" guideline.

[+Thedaviesnisus]

I'd do it. Why not, we all enjoy hiking through the wooded areas, admiring large redwoods for their size and trees both in their upward reaching status and as a dead logs make great hiding spots for caches.

It only makes sense that we would give back.

[+joranda]

We planted trees at mt CITO event again this year. People enjoyed doing it.

[+themeecer]

With development as bad as it is yes, there are areas that are worse off then they were 20-50 years ago. Not to mention tree disease and parasites. Here in the state of Michigan we were attacked by some bug that killed many of the white birch trees. I remember as a kid seeing them everywhere and realizing now that I haven't seen one in a long time. So not only is it a good ideal for trees in general but it'd be nice to help bring back disappearing species. Trees are also good air filters so the more the merrier!

 

I wouldn't dispute that some areas have less trees. I am simply saying overall we have a lot more trees than 50 years ago; just because you don't see them in your area doesn't mean there has been a general decline. I have plenty of wild white birch trees on my property. I choose to live in the country where I am surrounded by trees. I was a child of the 80s and we were plagued with the 70s mindset that the environment was on its deathbed. In school we were forced to write essays and make posters on how bad things were, instead of being allowed to question the hypothesis. At that time the scare was 'global cooling,' now they are worried about the Earth heating up even though there hasn't been a recorded increase in overall temperature in the past 10 years.

 

 

So once again, if it makes you feel good to plant a tree ... go ahead. If it makes you feel good to recycle, do that as well. But if you think in doing so you are helping an ailing planet, save your energy.

[+StarBrand]

Don't revolve the whole event around it. Just have them at the event for all those interested in helping out. Be sure they are a species of tree that is welcome in your area and coordiate with land owners/managers for an area that needs them.

 

Recently - the local area has had a vendetta to destroy all Russian Olive Trees but (when I asked) they were not interested in having any new trees planted in areas where the old ones were removed. They want the areas to be natural prairie. Odd stance here in the "plant a tree" state - home of the arbor day movement.

[+Lotho]

It would have been nice if virts were still allowed, have your tree a cache and gert them to picture it and identify it to pass the test to prove they've been there, shame virts aren't allowed.