It’s a well-established fact… trees treat us well. We don’t always return the favor, but there is a reason that “The Giving Tree” is a modern parable – trees take care of us in spite of our exploitation, removal, and large indifference to them. Innumerable studies have shown the linkage between the presence of tree canopy and positive impacts on human health. Trees provide a number of ecosystem services that can often go unnoticed. Notably, they help regulate extreme temperatures, remove harmful air particles, reduce erosion, favorably alter soil chemistry, dampen sound, sequester carbon, improve human health outcomes, and even increase your property value.

In pursuit of these goals, UF/IFAS Orange County Extension will be distributing trees at Orange County Parks and Recreation facilities throughout the County from 8AM to 12PM on scheduled Saturdays:

• July 17th – Fort Christmas Historical Park
• August 21^st – South Econ. Community Park
• October 2^nd – Dr. P. Phillips Community Park
• November 6^th – Magnolia Park
• December 11^th – Orlo Vista Park

As a part of the urban infrastructure, trees are often difficult to plan around, and large specimens that provide the most benefits often have to be removed. Compounding tree removals in initial landscape development, urban environments tend to be more stressful as urban trees tend to live shorter lifespans than their rural counterparts. Trees need good homes to reach their full potential. That is why we are calling on the residents of Orange County to “adopt” and care for these young trees during their establishment. As these transplants root and integrate into the landscape, they will be tomorrow’s giving trees. But the principal doesn’t stop there… the more tree canopy that exists in an area, the more it is possible to control negative urban conditions like excess heat, storm runoff, and air particulates. This is important for places like Orange County that are heavily urbanized. If planted in the right place, these trees will have impactful lives. There will be different trees available for different environmental and space conditions. Here are some of the perennial adoptees that should be available:

• Live oak (Quercus virginiana)
• Crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica)
• Bald cypress (Taxodium distichum)
• Red maple (Acer rubrum)
• Winged elm (Ulmus alata)
• Shumard oak (Quercus shumardii)
• Southern magnolia (Magnolia virginiana)
• Yaupon holly (Ilex vomitoria)
• Japanese blueberry (Elaeocarpus decipiens)

Additional Resources:

• Urban Tree Selection for Diversity
• UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions: Trees
• Florida’s Urban Forest: A Valuation of Benefits
• Ecosystem Services from Orlando’s Urban Forest
• Trees and Powerlines
• My Webpage

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