Establishing a Tree Replanting Program at Camp: Ideas and Advantages

Gather up the troops, let’s get everyone involved! Everyone can help such as: alumni, parents, campers, staff and counselors. While we understand a detailed landscape at camp is not a top priority, the trees play an important role. Blocking wind, providing shade and obstructing noise are just a few ways that trees can be utilized at camp. Developing a planting plan and coming up with inventive ways to motivate everyone to get involved can be challenging. Your tree replanting program could be exciting and something everyone looks forward to if you think of creative ways to keep everyone interested.

The first step is to develop a plan. List the areas that shade is needed, or you could think of areas where the views from camp are unpleasant. You should also focus on areas that surround villages where campers can gather to converse or play; these are the areas that the plantings should occur.  

Once a plan has been established, it is time to embrace a program at camp that teaches campers the importance of trees. Programs such as this can teach campers how to determine the age of a tree, what products are made from trees or how to identify a tree by its leaf. At the end of the program each year a different “planting event” can take place. One year, each camper can plant their own tree. By planting a tree, the camper can put their “stamp” on the camp. The next year, each village can plant a single tree symbolizing their memories of their time at camp together. In the years following, trees can be planted in remembrance or in dedication to someone. With a program like this initiated, participants are able to reflect on their camping experience as well as the meaning that individual tree has to them. Participants can then also reflect on the memories they have made since the tree has been planted when coming back to camp each year.  

The Arbor Day Foundation (www.arborday.org/index.cfm) has several programs that educate people about the impact that planting trees each year can have on the environment. For just $15, you can receive your membership to the foundation for an entire year along with 10 free trees (for $10 a 6-month membership and 10 free trees). Now imagine if every camper (or family) joined this program and brought a couple of the trees to camp to plant each year. At first, we would encourage purchasing trees or asking for donations of larger trees to kick-off your program. In the years following, consider the planting options outlined in this blog. Think of the endless possibilities and how beautiful your camp will be for years to come! 

The photo above shows Camp Albemarle in North Carolina. Due to a strong wind storm many trees were destroyed at the camp’s entrance opening up views from the main highway as well as letting in an abundance of noise as traffic moves by at a high rate of speed.

This next photo shows how much open space is actually at camp. While this isn’t a bad thing, the campers are at a loss for a place to get out of the sun unless a structure near by can provide them a shelter. 

In the master plan to the left, all of the light green single colored trees shown on the plan are areas that our Master Plan called for tree planting’s that could act as noise barriers or wind barriers as well as provide shade to camp.