DUNDEE – Many have just finished taking their Christmas trees down, but during an upcoming less-celebrated holiday, locals will have the chance to put a new one up.
One former Dundee elected official and the city of Winter Haven are working to engage community involvement for Arbor Day, which takes place Jan. 19. Former Dundee mayor and business owner Joe Garrison is working with Winter Haven Rotary to host an event Saturday.
“Their goal in Rotary is to plant a bunch of trees,” Garrison said. “We’re looking for Boy Scout groups and others to plant the trees around the lake. That was one of my priorities when I was Dundee mayor was to clean up the lakes.”
Garrison’s companies, Garrison Property Services and Garrison Land Management, will be donating 4,000 trees – 2,000 cypresses and 2,000 pines -- in celebration of Arbor Day. Garrison is looking for about 30 volunteers or groups to plant trees around lakes in Dundee and Winter Haven. He plans on meeting at Rotary Park in Winter Haven at 10 a.m. Saturday.
“It fills the air and is good for the environment,” Garrison said. “Cypress trees filter the lakes.”
Municipalities of Dundee and Winter Haven and the Polk Soil and Water Conservation Board are joining Garrison and Rotary in the effort. The city of Winter Haven is also partnering with the University of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension Polk County and Florida Forest Service to give away 150 trees at Central Park on Jan. 19.
“Most of the funding for this came from the Florida Forest Service,” said M.J. Carnevale, Winter Haven’s director of natural resources. “They’ve both been great partners.”
This is the fourth year in a row that the city has held the Arbor Day event. Trees will be given away at the north end of the park from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
“We gave away the majority of the trees last year,” Carnevale said. “We did some follow-up and the survival rate has been pretty good. This year, we’re focusing on trees that are wind-resistant and will survive in Florida.”
This year’s tree selection will be sparkleberry, sweetbay magnolia and dahoon holly trees. Polk County Master Gardeners and city staff will be on hand to provide educational information on how to care for the trees.
“We’re trying to find diversity in trees throughout our city,” Carnevale said. “Right now, we’re pretty heavy with oaks.”
In addition to oxygen, there are other benefits to trees, Carnevale said. Well-maintained trees, he said, can increase property values. If trees that give a lot of shade are planted near a window, it can actually help with home cooling efficiency.
Lakes targeted by Garrison for planting trees Saturday include near Lake Shipp, Lake Maude, Lake Elbert, Lake Martha, Lake Heritage and Lake Idylwild in Winter Haven. In Dundee, Lake Del and Lake Marie will be two of the locations. Pines and cypresses, Garrison said, grow between 1 and 2 feet per year.
“These are seedlings and they grow very fast,” Garrison said. “For all the trees we don’t plant on Saturday, we’re going to give away, so families can come out and get one or two.”
To volunteer or learn more about Saturday’s event, contact Garrison at 863-557-0419 or joe@garrisonland.com. To inquire about the Jan. 19 giveaway, call the city’s natural resource division at 863-291-5881.
Mike Ferguson can be reached at Mike.Ferguson@theledger.com or 863-401-6981. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson.