Saturday, February 14 – Hawthorne Hornets Stadium & Grove Park, Hawthorne
We gathered at the Hawthorne Hornets Stadium, where we planted 15 trees around the Stadium parking area. Then we caravaned to nearby Grove Park, where we planted an additional 10 trees along the periphery of the Park. Species planted included bald cypress (Taxodium distichum), black gum/tupelo (Nyssa sylvatica), eastern hop hornbeam (Ostrya virginiana), Frontier elm (Ulmus ‘Frontier’), live oak (Quercus virginiana), and southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora).
Saturday, January 17 (Arbor Day) – E.P. Powers Park & Boat Ramp, Gainesville
We gathered to celebrate Florida Arbor Day 2026 at E.P. Powers Park & Boat Ramp, on the shore of Newnan’s Lake (5910 SE Hawthorne Road, Gainesville). The morning’s festivities included inspiring and informative talks by guest speakers and local tree experts on tree planting and general tree care, lightning protection, palm diseases, and the importance of trees to butterflies and bees. After the talks we planted 15 trees – southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora), Chickasaw plum (Prunus angustifolia), mulberry (Morus rubra), live oak (Quercus virginiana), and pond cypress (Taxodium ascendens) – on locations around the Park.
Photographs by A. Ewert-Harpold, T. Harpold, C. Houder, D. Jordan, H.H. Rays, S. Xie, and D. Zhu. / CC BY