Stow City Urban Forestry Commission sets Arbor Day school planting, plans outreach at EarthFest

STOW CITY, March 10, 2025 — The Stow City Urban Forestry Commission on Monday finalized plans for an in-school tree planting with Woodland School, approved logistics for giving saplings to students, and agreed to combine its Arbor Day activities with the city's larger EarthFest outreach.

The commission scheduled the Woodland School tree planting for April 10, 2025, with a rain date of April 11. City staff and the school principal will finalize the planting time during the school day; commissioners discussed a mid-afternoon slot (about 1:30 to 2 p.m.) so students can participate after lunch and before dismissal. The commission also agreed that every participating student and staff member at Woodland would receive a sapling; the group discussed preparing about 350 units to include staff.

Why it matters: the plan pairs a hands-on planting with a public outreach opportunity at EarthFest so the commission can deliver planting, mulching and pruning demonstrations to attendees and hand out potted or bare-root saplings to households and students.

Details and logistics - Event alignment: Commissioners reported the mayor supported combining the commission's Arbor Day activities with the city's EarthFest to increase visibility and share stations for planting, mulching and pruning. Exact EarthFest date and final event layout will be set by city staff. - School planting: The commission and the Woodland School principal agreed the planting will occur during the school day; the final time will be set by the school and city staff. Students will be brought in groups so classes can participate without disrupting school operations. - Saplings and procurement options: Commissioners reviewed nurseries and price points. One Michigan supplier (Coldstream Farm) quoted bare-root saplings at about $1.27 to $1.51 each depending on size; a separate option for 360 white pine saplings in soil plugs was estimated at $444.50 plus shipping. The mayor indicated he would find funding for the student saplings; commission staff will obtain quotes and prepare a purchase order for review. - Packaging and distribution: Commission members agreed saplings intended for students should be individually bagged (quart/sandwich-size suggested) and labeled with brief planting instructions. High-school volunteers were proposed to help with bagging and distribution. - Demonstration stations: Commissioners proposed 15-minute rotating demonstrations at EarthFest for pruning, mulching and planting, supported by a portable PA system so demonstrations can be heard. Stations would include printed handouts and a QR code linking to curated web resources (short step-by-step instructions plus optional short videos). - Volunteer and staffing assignments: Commissioners discussed staffing each station with at least two volunteers; some members volunteered for specific stations (pruning, planting, mulching). City staff (Mike and others) will confirm site suitability and tree selection for the playground/park planting location.

Outreach and materials Commissioners debated the merits of printed handouts versus QR codes. The group decided to use a short printed card or sticker on each sapling bag with essential planting steps and a QR code linking to a web page that will host concise step-by-step guides and 2- to 5-minute instructional videos. The commission asked members to collect authoritative, non-commercial resources (state forestry agencies, university extension or government sources) and send them to the commission's point of contact (Linda) for compilation.

Program schedule and monthly outreach topics Commissioners agreed on a monthly outreach schedule for the coming year to align newsletters and graphics: May — mulching; June — oak wilt and tree diseases; July — watering; August — spotted lanternfly awareness; September — cost-share program; October — seasonal holiday tree decorating; November — benefits of urban trees; December — recycling/holiday wrap-up. Members volunteered to draft short articles or graphics for specific months and to forward materials to staff for inclusion in the city e-blast and social media.

Other business and follow-ups - Treekeeper access: Commissioners discussed expanding access to the city's Treekeeper inventory database for commission members; staff will work to grant permissions and identify at least two people with edit access. - Management plan and materials: Staff will circulate the revised tree management plan and sample handouts or videos before the next meeting so commissioners can finalize the event handouts and the web page content. - Minutes and scheduling: The commission approved the minutes from its Feb. 10 meeting. The commission set its next regular meeting for April 14, 2025.

What's next: staff will collect nursery quotes and finalize the purchase order for saplings, coordinate the exact school planting time with Woodland School, and confirm the commission's station assignments and EarthFest layout. Commissioners asked staff to compile short, authoritative resources for the QR-linked web page and to return a proposed layout and schedule at the April meeting.