Longleaf pine saplings will be offered at several locations
Sarasota County will celebrate National Arbor Day with a tree giveaway April 27 and 28, part of a local “Treejuvenation” program, the county has announced.
Individuals may visit any of five locations across the county on those dates to adopt a longleaf pine sapling for transplant, while supplies last, a news release says.
“Longleaf pines used to be a dominant feature of the original Florida landscape,” said Marguerite Beckford, commercial horticulture agent with the Sarasota County University of Florida/Institute for Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Extension and Sustainability program, in the release. “But, because they are a high-value lumber resource, outside of designated regeneration and reforestation areas their numbers have considerably diminished.”
Arbor Day, which is observed nationally on the last Friday in April, “highlights the key roles that trees play in our lives, from air cleansing to recreational opportunities,” the release explains. “Sarasota County Extension’s ‘Treejuvenation’ program builds on that through educational outreach, workshops, and other local efforts,” the release adds.
Adopt-a-sapling stations will be hosted by the county’s Extension/Sustainability and Planning and Development Services departments at the following Extension-operated plant clinics:
April 27, 10 a.m. to noon
- Sarasota County Extension office at Twin Lakes Park, located at 6700 Clark Roadin Sarasota.
- North Port Library, located at 13800 Tamiami Trail in North Port.
- Elsie Quirk Library, located at 100 W. Dearborn St. in Englewood.
April 28, 10 a.m. to noon
- Fruitville Library, located at 100 Coburn Road in Sarasota.
- Venice Farmers Market on Tampa and Nokomis avenues in Venice.
To qualify, individuals must bring proof of a Sarasota County address and agree to participate in a follow-up survey by providing their names, mailing addresses and email addresses, the release points out. Only one sapling will be supplied per physical address, and only while supplies last, the release stresses.
For more information, call the county Contact Center at 861-5000 or visit www.scgov.net.