What’s this about???

Ever heard of Johnny Apple Seed? Well, it’s sort of like that, but with seedlings instead of seeds and maples instead of apples.

I started giving away maple seedlings back in, oh, maybe 2005. That was a few years after my sugar maples had been particularly prolific and had produced a nice batch of “volunteer” seedlings which were growing happily.

Sugar maples were a large part of the reason I bought my house. The trees turn brilliant colors in the Fall, provide a cooling effect in the summer (it’s 10 degrees cooler under the shade of the maples than on my driveway). They let the warm rays of the sun through in winter time. They clean the air and give off an enormous amount of oxygen. They provide shelter for countless birds, squirrels, and all kinds of wildlife. So, the little seedlings were a welcome joy.

But everywhere around me, people were cutting down trees, clearing the way for more buildings, roads,  sidewalks, cement, asphalt, and well, civilization I guess. It was sad. I watched. I felt hopeless. Then I started giving away my little trees to anyone who would promised to plant them. I posted on free sites and told all my friends. The first year, I probably gave away 30 or 40 trees. The next year, a bit more, and the next, a little more. Somehow, though, it seemed like it just wasn’t enough.

At first, everyone wanted the biggest trees which were 3 to 6 feet tall. But these did not survive transplanting as well as the smaller ones. The roots of sugar maples, like many trees, grow deep and strong. The bigger they are, the harder it is to get them up out of the ground without breaking the roots. And the bigger the hole you need to successfully plant them, too.