Smithtown To Plant 200 Trees For Arbor Day

TOWN OF SMITHTOWN, NY — The Town of Smithtown plans to plant 200 spring street trees across the township in observation of Arbor Day on Friday, the town announced.

"This is part of the Town’s committed investment towards maintaining a healthy environment and robust urban forestry program," the township wrote in a news release.

Arbor Day is often celebrated on the last Friday in April as a day to promote education and awareness on the importance of trees in the community. The Town of Smithtown recognizes Arbor Day each year and typically celebrates by planting trees and taking other environmentally-friendly actions.

The Town of Smithtown was first declared Tree City USA in 1986 by the National Arbor Day Foundation. Since then, the town has strived to manage a streetscape lined with trees. The town maintained its reputation as Tree City USA for more than 36 years, in addition to recent efforts to begin a street tree census and identify invasive species.

The Smithtown Department of Environment and Waterways (DEW) received three consecutive Growth Awards from the Arbor Day Foundation for exceeding the basic requirements of street tree care. The Growth Award is given when a town completes major milestones and annual activities to build a community forestry program.

DEW has planted 2,000 trees since 2019. Since the street tree inventory project began in April 2020, 20,000 trees out of an estimated 50,000 street trees within the township have been cataloged. Preliminary data from the I-Tree Report from Oct. 13, 2022 shows that the Town of Smithtown has a greater than 30 percent tree canopy cover.

Residents can request street tree plantings in front of their residence by contacting the Department of Environment and Waterways via email at DEW@smithtownny.gov or by phone at 631-360-7514.