Tree board, civic groups celebrate Arbor Day with tree planting

Bare ground left by the removal of oak trees at Harriman Park due to the Bur Oak Blight outbreak will soon have shade once again.

The Hampton Tree Board, the Hampton Rotary Club and the Hampton Lions Club celebrated Arbor Day last Friday by teaming up to plant 13 trees near the playground at Harriman Park.

The variety of trees included a swamp white oak, swamp bur oak, a northern catalpa, bald cyprus, triumph elm and a 12-foot tall river birch. Randy Sanders, Hamp-ton Tree Board, said the variety was chosen both to diversify the amount of species in that area, which prevents an-other mass infection, and because those particular species are appropriate for the lay of the land.

“We’re replacing all those oak trees we took out because of the blight with trees that can handle the moisture down here,” he said.

Most of the trees were purchased with donations made by the Rotary and Lions Clubs, as well as individual donations. The river birch tree was donated by Iowa Native Trees and Shrubs.

Dan Hanson, Hampton Rotary Club president, said the Rotary Club was happy to help out because of the significance of Arbor Day and the ability to assist locally.

“It’s great to see all these groups go to so much work to make Hampton a great place to live,” he said.

This year’s celebration of Arbor Day looked a little different than year’s past. Sand-ers said typically students or other volunteers would show up in droves to help plant trees. However, due to social distancing guidelines, the Tree Board will handle plant-ings this year. While the manpower has been reduced in that way, Sanders said the board still aims to conduct planting projects this year at North Side Elementary and Hampton-Dumont Middle Schools, the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, a lot near the Rolling Prairie Trail, Mallory Park, the Wellness Center and WKW and Robinson Park.

“We’re taking projects a little at a time but we’re still going to get them done,” he said.