Arbor Day celebrated in Prescott, Nevada County

By John Miller, 04/7/22 6:19 PM

PRESCOTT – Six Nevada County third grade students went home with Sonic gift cards after winning an Arbor Day coloring contest.

For the past 13 years, Prescott has been designated as a Tree City by the Arbor Day Foundation. This was done because Prescott met the four requirements – forming a tree board or department, creating a tree-care ordinance, having an annual community forestry budget of at least $2 per capita and an Arbor Day observance and proclamation. Prescott Mayor Terry Oliver signed the Arbor Day proclamation Thursday morning.

Oliver and members of the Prescott City Council, along with city employees, gathered around one of the trees planted by the volleyball courts for a picture. Two trees were planted by the court, a Sawyer red oak and an October glory maple. As they grow, these trees will provide shade for those at the park.

A few tree facts: the net cooling effect of a healthy young tree is equivalent to 10 room-size air conditioners operating 20-hours-a-day; landscaping with trees can increase property value as much as 20 percent; in laboratory research, visual exposure to settings with trees produces significant recovery from stress within five minutes, as indicated by blood pressure and muscle tension; and the planting of trees improves water quality, resulting in less runoff and erosion. This allows recharging of the ground water supply.

The third grade coloring contest winners from Prescott Elementary School were: Aja Block, Lillie Beavers and Cardell Burnett. Block got a $20 gift certificate, while Beavers received one for $15 and Burnett’s was $10.

The winners at the Nevada School District were: Destinu Meeter, $25; Kamoria Mixon, $15; and Ryan Dillard, $10.