American Forests Forestbytes May 2010

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Twenty years after the planting of the first Global ReLeaf forest restoration project in Northern Michigan, American Forests will plant 4.8 million trees in 43 projects across the U.S. and in ten countries.

The projects will plant trees to restore forest ecosystems, including sites to provide habitat for the Kirtland’s warbler, to overcome wildfire-damage in the West, protect the wintering mountain sites in Mexico of monarch butterflies, and to help slow the decline of whitebark pine, a species headed soon for endangered status. Planting the right tree in the right place has allowed us to complete more than 600 projects in 20 years, and plant more than 30 million trees toward our goal of 100 million trees by 2020. View details on this year’s great projects

Global ReLeaf Project of the Month: Jack Pine for Kirtland’s Warbler

In cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service and the state of Michigan, this Global ReLeaf reforestation project is planting 402,000 trees over 369 acres to restore habitat for the rare Kirtland’s warbler in Michigan’s Huron- Manistee National Forest. The Kirtland’s Warbler, an endangered song bird, requires Jack pine trees and scattered openings of land to nest and flourish. READ MORE

Chegg Partnership Celebrates Millionth Tree

Earth Day began early for American Forests and Chegg at South Lake Tahoe where on April 16th we commemorated the millionth tree planted through our partnership. American Forests plants a tree in a Global ReLeaf project for each customer transaction of the popular textbook rental company Chegg. To learn more.

Earth Day Initiative Launched
American Forests marked the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day by appealing to hundreds of thousands of people on the National Mall and across the country to support our planting of 4.8 million trees in 43 projects this year. The projects were announced in an Earth Day press release, on our new Earth Day web pages, and to thousands of people who visited our booth on the National Mall during Earth Week. READ MORE

Western Week in Washington

American Forests welcomed the Rural Voices for Conservation Coalition (RVCC) and the 2010 Western Week in Washington (WWiW) during Earth Week. The RVCC is a coalition of business owners, environmentalists, land managers, and rural community advocates from the Western U.S. who are working to promote responsible economic and ecological solutions for issues facing rural communities. READ MORE

The Nation’s Biggest Trees Announced

American Forests marks the 70th Anniversary of the National Register of Big Trees with the announcement of 733 champion and co-champion trees from 637 native and naturalized tree species in the United States. Presented in a new online format, the 2010 edition also features a revised list of eligible species, ensuring consistency with today’s taxonomy and nomenclature for trees. READ MORE

Scotties ReLeaf USA: Chestnut Restoration, Education in Carroll County

This school year, Scotties and American Forests have been partnering with the Carroll County, MD public schools in a unique effort to restore American Chestnut trees. The project includes expanding Chestnut tree orchards to 14 schools, and CITYgreen software and teacher training to help students monitor tree growth, calculate carbon storage, analyze data and more as part of the unique STEM curriculum (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) developed around restoring the Chestnut. READ MORE

Arbor Day In Delmarva
It has long been the tradition on Arbor Day, a holiday dedicated to the appreciation of trees, to plant a tree in your yard or local park. This April 30th, American Forests and Nationwide Insurance joined forces with the Delmarva Poultry Industry (DPI) to demonstrate the planting of vegetative buffers around poultry houses on farms in Maryland and Delaware as part of a 16,000 tree Global ReLeaf project to help protect the Chesapeake Bay. READ MORE

Historic Trees for Troops for Memorial Day

In honor of our troops, this Memorial Day we’re offering a 20% discount on four of our historically significant military trees: the Minuteman Red Maple, Appomattox Court House Honey Locust, Alamo Live Oak and the Gettysburg Sycamore. These trees, with ties to the American Revolution and Civil War, are a great way to show appreciation for the extraordinary dedication and sacrifice troops made for our country. READ MORE.

Youth Attacks Historic Tree

A youth from the town of Clinton in New Zealand’s South Island was sentenced last month to 60 hours of community service for attempting to cut down a historic tree. READ MORE

Good News: Bad News

First, the good news: The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) announced that the global rate of deforestation has declined, slowing for the first time on record. From the years 1990-2000, the world lost more than 39 million acres of forested land from an estimated total of billion acres. READ MORE

Look Out For Upcoming Events... This Spring

Kirtland’s Warbler Wildlife Festival (May 15)
SAF Annual Meeting: 1910 Fires – A Century Later (Wallace, ID May 20-22) More Information
Remember, you can still vote for us in the Redwood Creek Wines Greater Outdoors Project every day until August 31st and help us reforest areas of California severely damaged by wildfire.

ACT’s Green Infrastructure Forum
The Alliance for Community Trees (ACT), the voice for more than 140 local tree groups and supporters including American Forests, used Earth Week to bring environmental advocates from across the nation to Washington to champion federal legislation to advance green infrastructure. READ MORE

Get Out There
Summer is a great time to get out of doors! That’s the goal of the new Be Out There campaign to get more kids off the couch and enjoying the outdoors, which a growing body of research links to reduced stress, longer attention span and improved school performance. READ MORE

Follow us on:

	Senate Climate Change Agenda After much effort was put into passing healthcare legislation, the Senate continues to push forward with its agenda by addressing economic recovery, immigration and reform, in addition to climate change. Senators Kerry (D-MA), Graham (R-SC), and Lieberman (I-CT) have compiled a draft bill focusing on a cap on greenhouse gas emissions that spans across economic sectors and also works for industry groups. READ MORE
	Forest Service Planning Rule The Forest Service is holding a series of public meetings to discuss creating a new planning rule – legislation that governs the management of forests and grasslands. The series began in early April in Washington D.C. with the Science Forum and First National Roundtable. In addition to two more roundtables in Washington D.C., the Forest Service has also planned for several regional meetings in the upcoming months. READ MORE

Tree Trivia
American Forests’ Global ReLeaf restoration projects plant roughly 150 – 500 trees per acre. At the rate of 350 trees per acre, it would take approximately 108,150 trees to plant Washington, DC’s National Mall.

Bonus Question:: The National Register of Big Trees began in 1940. The three trees to maintain their champion status since that time are: the Rocky Mountain juniper, the Western juniper, and the General Sherman giant sequoia.

This month’s question:
Approximately what percentage of the United States’ drinking water originates in the forests?

Learn the answers in next month’s Forestbytes! Send your answers to info@amfor.org, and two randomly selected correct responses will receive a complimentary copy of American Forests magazine and a Tree Hugger t-shirt.

Comments, suggestions on Forestbytes? We would love to hear from you! Send us an email at info@amfor.org.

Ask American Forests' Tree Doctor: American Forests has teamed up with The Davey Tree Expert Company to bring you answers to all your tree-related questions. Email treedoc@amfor.org