Hillsborough County To Plant Trees For Arbor Day Celebration

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, FL — Hillsborough County will plant trees and shrubs at Gardenville Park on Arbor Day (Friday) as part of a county program that has added more than 4,500 trees to parks and public spaces in the last three years, a county news release said.

The county's tree-planting program began in 2019 and primarily uses fees charged to developers to pay for trees that are planted throughout Hillsborough County. The county's goal is to plant more than 20,000 trees over the life of the five-year program. Trees provide shade, clean the air, harbor wildlife, lower cooling costs, soak up stormwater, and enhance property values, according to the news release.

Hillsborough County Parks & Recreation will oversee the planting of dozens of trees and shrubs at Gardenville Park & Recreation Center, 6219 Symmes Rd., Gibsonton. Work will begin at 9 a.m. on a planting list that includes pine trees, coontie palms, dwarf yaupon holly, and Simpson's stopper, an evergreen Florida native.

Projects Since The Tree-Planting Program Started Are Listed Below:

• Hillsborough County's first arboretum at Carrollwood Village Park has 331 trees - 60 species representing 17 countries.
• Parks & Recreation worked with the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, Boys & Girls Clubs of Tampa Bay, and Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful to plant about 50 trees at Bethune Park in Wimauma.
• A fruit orchard is growing outside Mango Recreation Center. Parks & Recreation and Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful planted 42 saplings representing 19 varieties of trees such as mango, avocado, papaya, and guava. Children at the center tend to the orchard and take home the harvest to their families.
• Parks & Recreation and the Greater Tampa Association of Realtors planted about 40 live oaks, robellini palms, purple tabebuias, crepe myrtles, bald cypress, and red maple trees at Northlakes Sports Complex, along with 20 blueberry flax lilies.
• Parks & Recreation is collaborating with University of Florida graduate students to assess the health and diversity of the urban forest at 144 Hillsborough County parks. The information will allow staff to better manage the urban forest and to plan additional tree-planting projects.
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For more information about planting trees on Arbor Day, visit Arbor Day Foundation's website.