Bureau County 4-H set to plant oak trees in City County Park on Saturday, April 2

Rain date set for April 9

In the spring of 2022, 4-H youth in 31 Illinois counties will each plant a grouping of 25 oak trees on public properties in their county.

Bureau County 4-H is currently looking for volunteers to help with planting a grouping of 25 oak trees at City County Park in Princeton, with the goal of tackling global issues at the local level. The organization will be looking to plant the trees beginning at 10 a.m. on Saturday, April 2.

“We need to become ‘carbon neutral’ by producing less CO2 gas and finding new ways to absorb and hold these carbon molecules so they don’t get trapped in the atmosphere which adds to the warming of our planet,” Curt Sinclair, University of Illinois Extension 4-H natural resources and shooting sports specialist said. “At the same time, we need to reduce stormwater runoff to improve water quality.”

Illinois once held 14 million acres of trees, according to Sinclair. That number dropped to 3 million acres before intentional efforts 50 years ago began to reverse the decline. Today, Illinois has 5 million acres of trees.

“More trees will move us closer to cleaner water, healthier soils, more animals and birds, greater biological diversity and cleaner air,” Sinclair says. “All these are critical to people’s health and quality of life.”

In the Spring, 4-H youth in Bureau county and 30 other counties throughout Illinois will each plant a grouping of 25 oak trees on public properties in their county. The groups will bring new life to oak-hickory forests currently under threat in Illinois.

Bureau County 4-H looks forward to partnering with the Bureau County Soil and Water Conservation District on this project.

“4-H utilizes a learn-by-doing approach which we felt there would be no better way to learn about the importance of oak trees than to have the hands-on experience of making an impact in our community through participation in this program,” Danielle Gapinski, Bureau County 4-H Program Coordinator said.

A rain date is also set for 2 p.m. on April 9. Youth, adults, businesses and other organizations that would like to participate in the planting process should contact Gapinski at 815-875-2878 or des85@illinois.edu.

“City County Park is a popular destination for families to enjoy many activities. We felt this would be a great location for our project and will provide an opportunity for those who take part in planting to be able to see the growth and impact of the trees for years to come,” Gapinski shared.

The 4-H Green Communities Tree Program follows the learn-by-doing philosophy of 4-H and is guided by the priorities of the Illinois Forest Action Plan. To help support this project, visit https://go.illinois.edu/4hgreencommunity.