Salem Plans Arbor Day Addition To Bates School

SALEM, MA — Bates Elementary School third-graders will get spruce seedlings and a lesson on the importance of trees to the environment during an Arbor Day event at the school on Friday.

The third-graders will assist Tree Warden Bob LeBlanc and Mayor Kim Driscoll in planting an Acer rubrum "October Glory" on school grounds. LeBlanc will then lead a discussion about the benefits of trees and a seedling to either plant at home or at Forest River Park.

Salem has been a part of the Arbor Day Tree City USA Program for the past 15 years.

"I am so proud of our tradition of planting trees and reaching out to students on Arbor Day," Driscoll said. "Trees not only improve the quality of life in our city, they also provide important environmental benefits.

"It's gratifying that we're able to pass on to future generations an appreciation for this vital natural resource."

Darleen Melis chairs the Tree Commission in the city.

"One of our new initiatives is the Century Tree program, part of the Salem 400 celebrations, to encourage residents, with assistance from the tree warden, to plant trees on their property that can grow and flourish into the next century," Melis said. "The city will evaluate the site, plant the tree and monitor it for two years."

At that point, the tree becomes the responsibility of the homeowner.

Those interested in the Century Tree program, or who wish to donate to the Salem Tree Fund that supports the program, can go here or contact LeBlanc at 978-745-0195.

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(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)