STEWARD — “Celebrate Oaks” was the theme of Steward’s 2017 Arbor Day Celebration on April 28 at Steward Elementary School.  When we look throughout history at many great civilizations, oaks are there.  Coincidence?  We think not.  Oaks have helped meet basic needs of food, shelter, heat, and contributed toward clothing and medicine early on.
Oaks have also been used for shipbuilding, which aided world exploration, and in beautiful, enduring architecture. Oaks have delivered. Today we prize oak flooring, woodwork, cabinets, and furniture. As with all trees, they also purify our air, reduce erosion, moderate temperature, produce oxygen, provide habitat for wildlife, increase property values, enhance economic vitality, beautify communities, and are a source of joy.

We used May Watt’s song, that she has taught at Morton Arboretum, to help students identify certain oaks. Red oak branches are V-shaped. White oak branches go straight out.  Bur oak branches are twisted.  Pin oak branches form an upside-down V.  Students demonstrated the shapes with their arms while others held pictures of corresponding leaf shapes as the audience sang the song.  
This year the Arbor Day tree is a Bald Cypress.  It is the only Bald Cypress in Steward.  A conifer, it is also deciduous, dropping its needles in the fall. We are looking forward to seeing the russet-red color this autumn.
Steward is one of more than 3,400 communities that has been recognized by Arbor Day Foundation, in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service and National Association of State Foresters, as a Tree City USA. For 13 years Steward has met these four standards:  Having a tree board, a tree-care ordinance, an Arbor Day Proclamation and Celebration, and spending at least $2 per capita on trees.
More information about Tree City USA can be found on arborday.org/TreeCityUSA.