Celebrate Arbor Day by learning to care for your trees

I’ve planted probably a dozen trees around my home in the past six years.

Some survived. Some didn’t.

Gone: A white flowering dogwood (Virginia’s state tree), probably planted too close to a southern magnolia.

Not sure yet: Two growth-challenged red crape myrtles planted about two years ago; a recently planted pink flowering dogwood, a saucer magnolia planted two years ago.

Thriving: Two white flowering dogwoods, a Japanese maple, four crape myrtles (one pink, one white and two light purple).

Tree planting is more than digging a hole. And tree care is more than hoping what you plant will grow.

I’ve learned the hard way.

Too often, too little thought is put into selecting, planting and caring for trees. I’m guilty.

Tomorrow’s your chance to get tree smart. Tree experts—arborists, foresters, tree stewards and others—will be on hand at The Carillon at Byrd Park for Celebrate Trees!, an Arbor Day celebration.

It’s an opportunity to learn about trees and tree care and to have some fun (How about tree climbing?).

In advance of the event, two of the scheduled presenters—Andy Mason of Arborscapes, a tree-service company, and David Terwilliger of the Virginia Department of Forestry—talked about common mistakes people make when planting and caring for trees.

We’ve compiled their responses into a list of tree care do’s and don’ts.