We need trees in order to survive. Think about it:

• Trees supply the oxygen in the air we need to breathe.
• Trees keep our air supply fresh by absorbing carbon dioxide.
• Trees lower air temperatures by evaporating water in their leaves.
• Trees cut down noise pollution by acting as sound barriers.
• Trees provide shade and shelter, reducing yearly heating and cooling costs by $2.1 billion dollars.
• Tree roots stabilize the soil and prevent erosion.
• Trees provide food and shelter for wildlife.

Our world needs help…Our world needs trees. We must each do our part to clean up the atmosphere. We can reduce our energy consumption and carbon emissions. And, we can make a commitment to plant and care for trees. Why trees? Trees grow by using the carbon from the atmosphere. The larger trees grow, the more carbon they are able to remove. In one year, a single tree can absorb as much carbon as is produced by a car driven 26,000 miles.

Trees contribute to a clean healthy environment in other ways as well. As they grow, taking in carbon dioxide from the air, trees also produce life-giving oxygen. Additionally, a tree provides shade and cooling, which lessens energy demands and pollution.

Tree Stewardship:  Caring for trees that already exist is something each responsible citizen of the world should do. Many trees die in their first 10-years of life. They must be protected during this critical stage in order to ensure survival. The large, old trees of our forests and cities have thrived only by overcoming many hazards and hardships. The trees on our lawns, along our roads, and in our parks will not survive without our help. Insects, diseases, buildings and road construction, droughts, air pollution, and other natural and man-made causes are continuously at work to weaken and ultimately kill our trees. When a tree dies, it releases the carbon back into the air. The death of one 70-year-old tree would return over three tons of carbon to the atmosphere.

Enough Trees? No!Our world needs trees…it needs many more trees. A personal commitment to planting and nurturing trees is vital to the health of our planet. Every single tree planted or cared for is important; every single year a mature tree is kept from dying is a help. We need trees because our very future depends on their survival! Trees need our help in order to survive. THINK ABOUT IT!

• Trees need pruning, fertilizing, and watering in order to survive.
• A tree doesn't reach its most productive stage of carbon storage for about 10 years, and many trees don't survive that long. The average tree in metropolitan areas survives only about eight years.
• One million acres of forest are lost to city growth each year.
• Of every four-city-trees that die, or are removed, only one is replaced.
• Any squirrel can plant a tree, but it takes a human to care for it in an urban area!

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For more information on the azaleas, contact your Southern University Ag Center parish agent or visit www.suagcenter.com.

Contact:
Southern University Ag Center County Agent, St Martin/Iberia parishes, Chris R. Robichaux at (337) 332-2181 or (337) 369-4440 or chris_robichaux@suagcenter.com.