Many Arbor Day 2020 events were cancelled across the Commonwealth due to COVID-19. But Lara Johnson and Molly O’Liddy (the urban and community forestry team at the Virginia Department of Forestry) didn’t want to miss out on celebrating with our community! Join Lara and Molly for a short tour of the native tree arboretum at VDOF’s headquarters office in Charlottesville, VA. For the past six years, VDOF has worked with volunteers from the Charlottesville Area Tree Stewards to plant this arboretum which now includes 35 different native tree species. Some of these trees are highlighted in the video, such as sassafras, silverbell, river birch, and the American chestnut. Lara mentions the trail that encircles the VDOF headquarters where visitors can find many identified trees and habitats; this trail links to the Rivanna Trail around Charlottesville. Molly explains how trees are important for our mental and physical health and gives suggestions on activities that can be undertaken to celebrate trees and Arbor Day.
For more information about the Virginia Department of Forestry, visit: www.dof.virginia.gov. The VDOF headquarters are located at 900 Natural Resources Drive, Charlottesville.