Naperville, IL,– Florida’s trees will be in the spotlight this fall when the STIHL Tour des Trees to benefit the TREE Fund rolls out of Orlando October 25. 85 cyclists will ride 560 miles in a week to raise money for tree research and education and raise awareness of the value that mature, healthy trees bring to Florida’s communities. Since 1992 the Tour des Trees has raised more than $6.6 million to fund research and education grants and scholarships administered by the TREE Fund.
The city of Fort Lauderdale and the TREE Fund will host a Trick or Treat with the Trees event October 31 as part of the city’s Halloween celebration at Esplanade Park from 1-5 p.m. Headlining the event is Professor Elwood Pricklethorn, who is traveling through Florida with the STIHL Tour des Trees October 25-31. The Professor (aka arborist Warren Hoselton of Toronto, Ontario) will present a kid-friendly short course in tree science at 1:30 p.m. at the park, (400 SW 2nd St., Fort Lauderdale).
The Professor’s 45-minute interactive program focuses on how trees grow, where and how to plant a tree so it will live a long life, and what kids can do to care for the trees in their world. At the end of the program the children, their families and the cyclists of the STIHL Tour des Trees will dedicate a new tree planted at the park as a legacy of the Tour’s visit to Fort Lauderdale.
Fort Lauderdale will give away 120 “Florida-friendly” trees during the event, and the TREE Fund is offering a prize for the best tree-related costume for kids under 18 and adults. In addition, each child will receive a book about trees, courtesy of Bartlett Tree Experts, a STIHL Tour des Trees water bottle from the TREE Fund and a “Trees are Good” temporary tattoo from the International Society of Arboriculture. Fort Lauderdale’s Public Library also will receive a set of books for inclusion in its children’s collection.
Families are encouraged to come to the park to learn more about Florida’s unique urban forest and the people who care for it, and to take home a tree of their own. Representatives from The Davey Tree Expert Company, STIHL, the Florida Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture and Asplundh Tree Expert Co. will join the TREE Fund in offering treats for youngsters in costume at the event.
About TREE Fund
The TREE Fund is a non-profit foundation dedicated to the discovery and dissemination of new knowledge in urban forestry and arboriculture (the science of caring for trees in a landscape). The TREE Fund manages a portfolio of scholarships and education grants to engage and support the next generation of tree stewards, and research grants to improve the science, safety and practice of arboriculture.
With support from individual and corporate donors and major sponsors STIHL Inc., Bartlett Tree Experts , the Davey Tree Expert Company, Arborjet, Asplundh, International Society of Arboriculture (ISA), KASK, Tree Care Industry Association and Florida Chapter of ISA, TREE Fund research has contributed to:
- Improved utility vegetation management practices
- Understanding of air pollution reduction and carbon sequestration by trees
- Quantification of the benefits of urban trees
- Improved transplant survival rates in difficult sites
- More effective disease and pest management strategies for urban trees
TREE Fund w 552 S. Washington St., Ste. 109 w Naperville, IL 60540 w www.treefund.org
