Tree planting to recognize nation's anniversary

NORWALK — At 9 a.m. this Saturday, May 9, the Huron County Master Gardeners will be planting a native Swamp White Oak tree in Shady Lane Memorial Park in honor of the semiquincentennial of the United States of America. We are doing this as a living tribute to honor this historic milestone, and members of the public are invited to attend. Master Gardeners began in 1972 in Washington state. It is now found in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, with active membership over 95,000. Master Gardeners continue to learn and share information and our time. The Huron County Master Gardeners have completed 17,173 continuing education hours since their inception in 1998 and have shared information by volunteering in our community, 3,986 hours in 2025, and 82,859 hours since their beginning. We are planting an oak tree because they symbolize everything that our Huron County Master Gardeners volunteers embody: strength, endurance and community. Oak trees symbolize: • Strength: Strong and durable wood, largely disease and pest free, found in most of all the habitable northern hemisphere and adaptable, as there are more than 500 species, growing in mostly all soil types. • Endurance: Long-lived, as in 250-plus years, meaning this tree could be here on our quincentennial. • Community: Oaks provide food, nesting and cover habitat for over 2,300 different species; i.e., 900-plus butterflies and moths, plus birds, waterfowl and mammals; temperature regulation — shade; and not least, removing carbon dioxide from the air and releasing oxygen for us to even exist. It is fitting and proper for this tree to be planted in a community space — Huron County Memorial Park— all are welcome. A memorial — don't forget what has happened in the past to get us here now, and a county seat, Norwalk — continuing what Platt Benedict started in 1831, a tree city. We plant it today, knowing that many of us will not ever sit in its shade, but with faith, that future generations to come will know its joy. May we as a nation plant many more.