WTUFC Contributes Apple Tree to Community Garden

On hand were Jim Tolbert, President of WTUFC, El Paso City Council Representative Emma Acosta, Brent Pearson , Oscar Mestas and members of the Cielo Vista Neighborhood Association

The West Texas Urban Forestry Council (Los Tree Amigos) and the Cielo Vista Neighborhood Association celebrated Texas Arbor Day today by planting a tree in the Community Garden of the Cielo Vista Neighborhood Association. Oscar Mestas, Texas A&M Urban Forester, and Brent Pearson, City of El Paso Arborist, demonstrated the correct way to plant a tree. 

City Arborist, Brent Pearson, finishes planting the apple tree.

On hand to help plant the tree were City Council Representative, Emma Acosta, WTUFC Board President, Jim Tolbert, and WTUFC Treasurer, Joanne Burt.

Jim Tolbert, Brent Pearson, Emma Acosta

Arbor Day was founded in 1872 in  Nebraska. By the 1920s, each state in the United States had passed public laws that stipulated a certain day to be Arbor Day. In Texas, Arbor Day is celebrated every year on the first Friday in November, the best time of year to plant trees in our climate. The customary observance of Arbor Day is to plant a tree. On the first Arbor Day, an estimated one million trees were planted.

Trees produce oxygen and clean the air. A mature leafy tree produces as much oxygen in a season as 10 people inhale in a year. Trees act as a giant filter that cleans the air we breathe. Trees absorb carbon dioxide which promote climate change.

It is the mission of Arbor Day to inspire people to plant, nurture, and celebrate trees.

The Friday Video: Texas Arbor Day 2015 [The proclamation is well worth listening to.]


For more information:

West Texas Urban Forestry Council (especially tree care page)

EPWU Desert Plant List

City of El Paso Tree Care Manual

Urban Forester Oscar Mestas to Present at Tree Workshop

Click on image to enlarge.

The Texas Urban Forester for our region, Oscar Mestas, will be a presenter at a Tree Workshop sponsored by the Sustainability Office of the City of El Paso. The workshop is set for next Thursday, February 19, from 2 to 3 PM at the Memorial Park Library, 3200 Copper Avenue. (MAP) Oscar is also one of the founders and current Secretary of the West Texas Urban Forestry Council and a regular lecturer at Master Gardener educational events.

Other speakers include David Parra, Principal Landscape Architect at Greenway Studio, LLC, and Nicole Ferrini, Chief Resilience Officer at City of El Paso.

The event is free and open to the public.

Save El Paso's Christmas Tree

It's insane but true. The City of El Paso is planning to cut down the tall Mondel Pine in San Jacinto Plaza which has served for years as the annual Christmas tree. As everyone knows the Plaza is being completely re-done. Rumors first surfaced that Rep. Cortney Niland wanted the tree pruned and re-shaped to resemble a more triangular tree. Now it seems that the City is looking for a company to take down the tree. Only problem is that the City (its, Manager, Mayor, City Council representatives) are violating city ordinances regarding the removal of such trees.

When the pine was trans-planted at the park, Texas State Urban Forester, Oscar Mestas, wrote about it:

"The new 50’ tall Christmas tree, a Mondel Pine (Pinus eldarica), was transplanted by Environmental Designs of Tomball, Texas. Mrs.Corrine Boyce of El Paso provided the tree in memory of her late husband Chuck Boyce. It was moved from her front yard in the Upper Rio Grande Valley of El Paso to San Jacinto Plaza in Downtown El Paso. The tree was moved on the 9th of September 1998 at a cost of $19,000. In the past the El Paso Parks Department used to send a crew each year to harvest five trees where they would use the branches to construct a 70’ tall artificial Christmas tree at the plaza. This new tree should save the City of El Paso approximately $60,000.00 a year, in labor, equipment costs, travel, materials and supplies, according to Richard Garcia Parks, Maintenance Supervisor. The new living tree is decorated with 3500 lights, and 1000 new ornaments donated by the El Paso Community Foundation. The old artificial tree was flocked, so it is taking a little time for El Pasoans to adjust to the natural green color. The tree is only 25 years old, so it is expected to add on another 20+ feet in height and should live at least another 50+ years. Let’s not forget to mention the other benefits of shade, oxygen, beauty, and pollution control, that this tree will be providing during the rest of the year. If you haven’t seen the tree, take a trip downtown it is worth the trip.The new 50’ tall Christmas tree, a Mondel Pine (Pinus eldarica), was transplanted by Environmental Designs of Tomball, Texas. Mrs.Corrine Boyce of El Paso provided the tree in memory of her late husband Chuck Boyce. It was moved from her front yard in the Upper Rio Grande Valley of El Paso to San Jacinto Plaza in Downtown El Paso. The tree was moved on the 9th of September 1998 at a cost of $19,000. In the past the El Paso Parks Department used to send a crew each year to harvest five trees where they would use the branches to construct a 70’ tall artificial Christmas tree at the plaza. This new tree should save the City of El Paso approximately $60,000.00 a year, in labor, equipment costs, travel, materials and supplies, according to Richard Garcia Parks, Maintenance Supervisor. The new living tree is decorated with 3500 lights, and 1000 new ornaments donated by the El Paso Community Foundation. The old artificial tree was flocked, so it is taking a little time for El Pasoans to adjust to the natural green color. The tree is only 25 years old, so it is expected to add on another 20+ feet in height and should live at least another 50+ years. Let’s not forget to mention the other benefits of shade, oxygen, beauty, and pollution control, that this tree will be providing during the rest of the year. If you haven’t seen the tree, take a trip downtown it is worth the trip."

Mestas wrote the above in 1998. Based on his expertise that tree should have another 34 years of life and service to El Paso. 

It's a beautiful tree.

Please sign the online petition to save the tree.

Water Your Trees Right Now!

An email message from three tree organizations had this subject line: "Epic Texas Drought - Water Trees Now!" It was sent to their members and said:

"Most of Texas is at the highest level of drought intensity and this is weakening and killing many landscape trees.

"We urge you to send a message/press release out to your customers, citizens, members and clients asking them to water their trees right now."

It was signed by Dr. Todd Watson, President of the Texas Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture, Tom Boguus, State Forester and Director with the Texas Forest Service and Gary Woods, the President of the Texas Urban Forestry Council.

As a matter of fact, Oscar Mestas, the Texas Urban Forester for our region, came by this morning and looked at a number of trees in our neighborhood. Some had feared that bugs or disease was killing them. The real cause: lack of water. Water needs to soak slowly into the ground and soak for a long time.

The Texas Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture offers great tips including watering during a severe drought. Also check out the U.S. Drought Monitor.

Urban Forestry Department for El Paso?

A University of Vermont report on tree canopy for Washington D.C. well explains the need for any urban center to increase its tree canopy: "Urban tree canopy provides many benefits to communities including improving water quality, saving energy, lowering city temperatures, reducing air pollution, enhancing property values, providing wildlife habitat, faciltating social and educational opportunieties, and providing aesthetic benefits." We could also add that trees help to calm traffic and to manage stormwater.

The City of El Paso (or any City) does not have to do it's own research to establish the fact that healthy trees and landscapes are a great investment for municipalities. There are studies already out there that show just that. There are also plans already being implemented that can serve as models for increasing canopy. A good example is the Roadmap to Tree Planning and Planting, a cooperative effort of the Texas Trees Foundation and the City of Dallas.

One can also draw upon studies by other organizations such as the American Lung Association which shows the state by state pollution problems of counties including El Paso County.

Regional Urban Forester, Oscar Mestas, believes that "El Paso does need to and should look at developing a Urban Forestry Department with it own separate funding where the department will be able to develop a management plan that looks at what we have, what is available and how can we go about increasing our canopy." He agrees that reports such as that from the American Lung Association provide good reason to increase the urban tree canopy.