In Florida, we celebrate Arbor Day on the 3rd Friday of January, whereas National Arbor Day is the last Friday in April.

“This is actually a great time to plant trees,” said Bobby Wagner, Director of Trees on the Coast. “We do hit a little bit of 30 degree weather like we are seeing this week but we are getting into a great root-creation season.”

To celebrate Arbor Day, Trees on the Coast is working with the City of Destin, and will be donating and planting $3,000 worth trees at the Kell-Aire Nature Walk.

Wagner and his team will plant 17 sand live oaks that are roughly 7-8ft tall.

“They’re almost getting into the mature phase so they shouldn’t take long to transplant and start becoming a big tree in the area,” he said.

Trees On The Coast is working toward getting the county recognized as a community wildlife habitat. Wagner says that Florida’s Arbor Day was the perfect platform to kick-off their endeavors to help turn these small, localized pieces of land into registered community habitats.

As for future habitats, he says that Trees On The Coast’s goal is to put 100 trees in the ground each year.

“Most of these trees are around the $300 price point,” he said. “Each year we are looking to spend between $30,000-$50,000 to plant trees in the local community, from Walton to Okaloosa County.”