Happy Earth Day!

Hey everyone! Happy Earth Day!

Like most roads, the dirt road that we live along is flanked by a line of telephone poles. This in itself is not a problem; the problem arises when, every few years, a bunch of guys armed with chainsaws and clippers come down our road. They attack the saplings and other plant life growing under the wires until hardly anything green is left, to prevent the trees from growing tall enough to interfere with the wires. I know that this is being done for a very sensible reason, but I still find it sad that they're killing all those pretty young saplings. So, a few years ago, I proposed that we should rescue some.

So now, every Earth Day, Zoe and I head out along the road with a wheelbarrow and a shovel, and dig up a handful of saplings, which we later transplant into the forest around our house.

Today, we set off down the road like always, and came back an hour or so later with a wheelbarrow full of saplings. Most of them were full and healthy, and these we planted in a clump a little ways into the forest. Then we came to the last tree. Unlike its companions, it was far from being full and healthy. It was so small that I could easily hold it my arms, and a few of its needles had turned orange. It was a pitiful, Charlie-Brown-type tree, but had looked so small and helpless on the side of the road that I had felt the need to pick it up and bring it home. We decided to plant it all by itself at the back of my mom's hosta garden.

We first had to clear away all the leaf litter and debris so there was a clear patch of dirt where we could begin digging. 

When the patch was sufficiently large enough, Zoe picked up the shovel and started to dig the hole where the tree would rest.

She stood back to admire her work after she had carved out a hole just large enough for the sapling.

Seeing that the hole was ready, I picked up the little tree in my arms and brought it over to where Zoe was standing.

I placed it in the hollow, stood it upright, and held it steady as Zoe again picked up her shovel and started to fill the hole with dirt, pouring the soil gently around the tree's roots.

We packed the soil down firmly so the tree could stand upright on its own. I ran to fetch a watering can and drizzled some water around its roots. We stepped back to admire our handiwork as soon as I had emptied the can.

Does your family have any traditions for Earth Day? Aren't you glad it's spring?

That's all for now! Thanks for reading!