Plant a Tree
Here’s how you can plant a tree:
1. First decide when to plant your tree. Carbon Day is Held each year on Sept 15.
2. Now decide where to plant your tree. You can plant your tree in your backyard with your family. Or you can ask your teacher if there is a place to plant it at school.
3. Buy your tree. For $10 you can join the National Arbor Day Foundation and receive ten trees in the mail. Ask an adult to help you sign up and order your trees. You can also buy a tree from your local nursery (a place that grows trees and other plants). Ask a person who works at the nursery to help you choose a tree that will grow well in your area.
4. Prepare your tree for planting. If you ordered a tree through the mail, it will have bare roots. Unpack the tree and soak the roots in water for 3 to 6 hours. If you bought a tree at a nursery, ask someone there for planting instructions.
5. Plant your tree. Dig a hole that is just as deep as and about twice as wide as the roots. Place the tree in the hole and hold it upright while a friend fills the hole with dirt. Pack down the dirt. Give your tree plenty of water.
6. Spread a layer of mulch about two inches deep around your tree but not touching it. (You can buy mulch at a nursery.) Mulch helps keep your tree from drying up.
7. Water your tree often over the next year and watch it grow!
8. Think about it:
· Who did your project help?
· What did you see and hear during the project?
· How did this project make you feel?
· What did you learn that you did not know before?
· What new questions or ideas do you have?
· Is there anything you would do differently the next time?
9. Celebrate! Thank everyone who helped you. And remember to REGISTER YOUR TREE ON CARBONDAY.COM
10. Keep helping. There are plenty of other ways to help the environment. Get your classmates or your after school program to adopt a park to keep clean. You can go back every month and have a contest to see who can pick up the most trash in half an hour.
