We Love Trees

May 16th was Love A Tree Day. While it’s probably an unofficial holiday, it’s one worth celebrating. I love trees. My favorites being the giant Redwoods and Sequoias. When I lived in Santa Cruz I used to take my son walking on the Redwood Grove Trail at Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park. This was where my little boy learned to run and explore, searching for the numbered posts along the self-guided nature trail. It was perfect because it was flat and wide with fences along the sides. And walking with my little one through the majestic giants was peaceful. Everything was ok there.

Now, living in southern California, we don’t get to see the big guys much. Occasionally we spot a grove of redwoods at nature centers and parks like Shipley Nature Center, Fullerton Arboretum, or Carbon Canyon Regional Park. There are even a few at the Environmental Nature Center in Newport Beach. But they are few, and many of them show the wear of the drought. Now we are mostly surrounded by palm trees and when we hit the trails we often find large oak trees and evergreens.

We studied trees at the beginning of the year when we covered plants in our science book, but we never really stop learning about trees. I can’t for the life of me identify most trees on the streets in our neighborhood, but I love what they do for us. We recently picked up a tree identification guide at a nature center and we plan to take a special tree hike to learn more about the trees in the area. I think I might even add on a “What Tree Is This?” activity where we take sample of trees near our home and take them to the nursery to find out what they are.

What are your favorite trees and what do you commonly see in your area?

Questions for Conversation

How do trees help people?

What types of trees do you see in your neighborhood?

What is your favorite tree?

What can you do to help trees?

General Information

http://www.ecokids.ca/pub/eco_info/topics/forests/types_of_trees.cfm

http://www.kidsdiscover.com/spotlight/trees-for-kids/

http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/olympia/kids/terrific_trees.htm

Activities and Printables

http://www.kidzone.ws/plants/trees.htm