Scarlet Sage is a beautiful addtion to any Florida landscape.

People for Trees, Inc. www.peoplefortrees.com “Save a tree today, and we’ll all breathe a little easier!” Since 1997 “got shade?” March/April 2008 Mission Statement: to promote the importance of protecting and maintaining a healthy native tree canopy! People for Trees, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit group that began in 1997 as a grass-roots effort by citizens concerned over the destruction of our tree canopy. Find out what YOU can do to help.

PEOPLE FOR TREES, INC. HAS RECEIVED THE 2003 Sarasota County Environmental Education Award The Keep Sarasota County Beautiful Award (2004 & 2005) We meet the first Monday of each month at the George D. Mullen Activity Center (located behind City Hall on Sumter Blvd.), 7:00 PM. Next meeting: May 5 New members (and the curious!) are always welcome. Refreshments, tree & plant raffle. The 10th Annual People for Trees Festival Saturday, April 19, 2008 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM Dallas White Park, Greenwood Ave. A community event that celebrates the REAL Florida! ** Exhibits ** Vendors ** Live Music ** Food ** Tree & Plant Sales ** ** Interactive Tree Walk ** Tree Scavenger Hunt ** Tree Maze ** 200 adults who attend a tree workshop at the festival will receive a FREE native tree! Many 3-gallon native trees for sale---only $12.00! Buy 6 get one FREE! Tree planting demonstrations! Hey Kids! Check out the Pine Cone Zone! 12 NOON - “Adopt-a-tree” workshop just for you! Take home a tree for only $1.00! Have fun in the Bounce Castle, meet a Florida panther! Tree Maze! Take a “Tree-mendous” hay ride! Face painting! Tattoos! Make a Talking Tree Puppet! Brought to you by North Port Parks and Recreation and proudly sponsored by: Sunny Days Ice Cream, Don & Marge Del Core, Gill Family Medicine ECOSWF, Paula & Walter Johnson, Coastal Wildlife Club, Inc., North Port Tae Kwon Do, Inc., In memory of Jerry Kostka, North Port Feed Supply, North Port Sun Community Support: Publix Supermarkets Mark your calendars! May 10- Our annual Eco-Boat Tour with Grande Tours in Placida. $10, adults, $5, children. This is our Eco-Kids Club finale for the 2007-2008 season. Seating is limited so reservations are required. Call 426-9752. The Eco-Kids Club is open to ALL children who want to explore the REAL Florida.Open enrollment. Join us any Saturday and you’re a member! May 17-Our semi- annual Florida-friendly Tree & Landscape Clinic. North Port Community Education Center, Pan Am Blvd. Co-sponsored by North Port Utilities.11-12. In just one hour you’ll learn the basics of having a yard that is more compatible with Florida’s fragile environment by using plants, trees, and shrubs that are native/drought-tolerant. See how easy it is to reduce your grass areas and save water, time, and money on your landscaping. FREE! Plant, tree sales.

May 24 – Our Annual Tour of Florida-friendly yards in North Port! It all starts at 9:00 AM from 3597 Froude St. From there you’ll be given addresses/directions to the other yards. Visit some or visit them all! Tours continue until 2:00. $5.00 donation per person.

NATIVE TREES FOR SALE! People for Trees ONLY sells NATIVE TREES. (Sorry Virginia, orange and lemon trees are NOT native to Florida.) $10.00 each for members/ $12.00 non-members. Larger sizes can be ordered. Free delivery within the North Port area. We generally have the following excellent choices. Call for availability. 426-9752. #1 choice: The Sweetgum. A fast-growing shade tree. Deciduous, beautiful orange leaves in the fall. Southern Red Cedar. Florida’s Christmas tree. Evergreen, retains cone shape. Does well in any soil. Bald Cypress. Soft needles, turns a beautiful orange in the fall. Prefers moist areas. Symmetrical shape. Southern Magnolia. Slow growing, stately tree. Waxy leaves, beautiful white flowers. Florida Elm. Small leaves, turn a beautiful yellow in the fall. No Dutch Elm disease here. Upward branches. Winged Elm. Leaves like a Florida Elm but the branches curve downward and form “wing-like” attachments on branches. Slash pine. The oxygen king of the south. Major component of our tree canopy. Preferred by birds & wildlife. Longleaf Pine. Another terrific pine tree. Grows wider and has a larger canopy than the slash pine. Laurel Oak – Similar to a Live Oak, but has smoother bark.

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QUICK TREE FACTS ? One mature tree absorbs 400 gallons of water! o Outside temperatures around trees are reduced by as much as 15 degrees. ? Trees increase a home’s property value anywhere from 5-9%. o A shaded roadway’s life will be extended by at least 12%. ? Shoppers will spend 15% more in areas that have shade. o Businesses in shaded districts will pay more than 7% in rental rates. ? One tree produces $625 in oxygen per year, enough for four people. o One hundred trees capture 250,000 gallons of rainwater. ? A 100-foot width of trees can reduce sound by 6-8 decibels. A well-treed community can save at least $725,000 a year in energy costs.

Hey Kids! Join the “Eco-Kids” Club! The Eco-Kids Club meets one Saturday a month and is open to ALL children who want to explore the great outdoors of Florida. A new adventure every month. Registration is NOT required. All children must be accompanied by an adult. Suggested donation $1.00 per child. May 10- Our Annual End-of-the-Eco-Kids-Year-Eco-Boat Tour. We leave from the “Grande Tours” boat dock, where 771/775 meet in Placida. 9:00 AM SHARP! $5.00/kids, $10.00/adults. Take a tour along Gaspirilla Island and then the boat anchors in an estuary and we go exploring. You might even get to see a dolphin or two! Return back around 11:00 AM. RESERVATIONS REQUIRED FOR THIS AS SEATING IS LIMITED! People for Trees, Inc. is pursuing a “People for Trees” Environmental Heritage Center. This center would embrace, promote, and preserve our natural heritage, the REAL Florida. It would feature interactive “kid-friendly” nature displays, be a base for our monthly Eco-Kids Club, offer summer nature day camps for children and possibly an after-school care program with nature-based activities to encourage children to GET OUT THERE and get in touch with the outdoors! Ongoing Florida Friendly Tree and Plant Clinics, workshops, and classes would be offered. Demonstration plots would offer real examples of Florida-friendly landscaping. A native tree nursery would serve to educate about our diverse native tree canopy and promote good tree stewardship in the community. We already are a 501(c)(3) non-profit group so donations are ALWAYS tax-deductible! Call Alice White at 426-9752 is you’d like to be part of this exciting venture to make this center a reality.

** Businesses on tree-lined streets experience increased sales as shoppers will linger longer

** Children perform better in school if they are able to spend time in green settings!

** Neighbors spend more time outside and have more opportunities to meet one another in areas that have trees!

** Crime rates are significantly lower in green communities!

** Urban areas without trees become “heat islands”, concentrations of concrete and asphalt traps and releases heat during the day and into the night. That’s why it’s always hotter in cities than the outlying suburbs.

“Knowledge is power” Most have noticed the clearing along 41 near Salford. But did you know all of that canopy being destroyed is only costing the developer a $180 burn permit? What will North Port residents receive as compensation for the lost tree canopy? NOTHING! The city’s ordinance states a 35% tree canopy is required but this can be done by planting small trees that will ONE DAY provide a 35% canopy. (This option is most often chosen by builders and developers. On a typical 80x125 lot, all can be cleared in exchange for planting 3 oak trees.) However, those trees ALSO happen to satisfy the city’s landscaping ordinance. Now that’s a “2 for 1” deal. And since buildings issued a Certificate of Occupancy are EXEMPT from the tree ordinance, whether or not the trees planted will actually be around to provide the promised 35% canopy is anybody’s guess. Amendments are being made to the city’s Comprehensive Plan regarding land-use changes. This includes accepting the Isles of Athena for large-scale development – over 15,000 homes. Our question: Where will their water come from and why can’t we have access to it now? Afterall, we’re all having to comply with strict water restrictions so why can’t we have the water for those 15,000 homes NOW???

What are YOUR thoughts??!! Send them to: treelady12001@yahoo.com

Show your support for a healthy environment. A healthy environment begins with a healthy tree canopy that filters pollutants, provides oxygen, shade, and wildlife habitats. According to a tree study conducted in Sarasota County that included North Port, 1% of our tree canopy has disappeared every year since 1976 and on a percentage basis, Florida is losing more of its tree canopy than the Amazon Rain Forest. Let your concerns be known. Contact our City Commissioners (426-8484), write Letters to the Editor!

Suntrust Bank has extended their “Your Cause” campaign. Open up a Suntrust checking account and they’ll donate $100 to People for Trees! Remember: the checking account is FREE and it can be in addition to your existing checking account through another bank!

People for Trees, Inc.--- Involved in the Community! Florida-friendly landscaping for Cohen Homes (Suburban/Harwood) & North Port Family YMCA Pool Area Created “one-pot” butterfly gardens with 60 students from the Cranberry Elementary Environmental Club Dedicated Jerry Kostka’s tree along our Tamiami Trail Tree Walk Two more trees planted at North Port High School Hosted our semi-annual Florida-friendly Clinic in February

People for Trees,Inc. is the tree canopy and environmental advocate in North Port and we have been for TEN YEARS (1997-2007). We will continue to work for the protection of a healthy tree canopy, for everyone’s health, safety, and well-being. YOUR support is needed---become part of our efforts with a membership. Membership Information Choose your level. All donations are tax-deductible. We are a 501 (c)(3) non-profit group. Fed. ID# 59-3669626 (___) Pine Needle. $10.00 per household. Renewals and basic member benefits include newsletters, notification of mulch deliveries, workshops, tree discounts. (___)Pine Cone. $20.00 per household. Includes a 3-gallon Florida tree of your choice. (___)LongLeaf. $30.00 per household. Includes a Florida-Friendly Landscape consultation and a 3-gallon native tree such as a pine, Red Cedar, Sweetgum, Bald Cypress, Florida Elm.

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e-mail:______________________________________________/Phone_________________` www.peoplefortrees.com Mail check payable to People for Trees to: 3597 Froude St., North Port Fl 34286 To contact us: treelady12001@yahoo.com 426-9752 Officers 2007-2009 Chair: Alice White, Vice-Chair: Linda Massey, Treasurer: Valerie Ollinger, Secretary: Doris Doersam Board of Directors 2007-2009: Shirley Malanowski, Mary Nicol, Allain Hale, Bonita Goldman, Sal & Sue Piazza People for Trees, Inc. Since 1997 c/o 3597 Froude St. North Port, Fl 34286 www.peoplefortrees.com treelady12001@yahoo.com

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The iris hexagana is a beautiful addition to any Florida yard.

What about that sod??? Are you ready to make the break? On average in Florida, 40-60% of household water usage is attributed to landscapes dominated by turf-grass and exotic (water-guzzling) plants. Watering a 20 x 50 foot area of sod requires about 500-600 gallons of water, about what you¹d use in a week for your own personal needs. The EPA found that running a lawnmower for one hour creates as much air pollution as driving a car for 350 miles! Also, every year more fuel is spilled filling lawn equipment in America than was lost by the Exxon Valdez in Alaska! A grass lawn is a sterile monoculture that supports little life other than fleas, ticks, and mole crickets. ( Information compiled by the University of Florida). But of course, grass is big-business and for this reason community governments (such as here in North Port) seem unable to ³break-away² from insisting that new homes be completely sodded. Mulched areas which can then be filled with drought-tolerant plants by the homeowner should be part of a community¹s landscaping requirement plan.

Here¹s the simplest way to convert grass areas into mulched areas that are ready for planting:

1. DO apply Round-Up to the grass area, being careful not to spray on windy days. Round-Up is NOT a poison, but rather prevents the grass ( and any plant it¹s sprayed on) from feeding so it will eventually die. Or, if you prefer, skip step #1 and go directly to step 2. 2. DO cover grass area to be eliminated with newspapers, about 4-6 layers. 3. DO cover the newspaper with leaves (oak leaves work the best!) and/or pine needles (pine straw). 4. You can then use prepared mulch for a final top layer, or just leave the pine needles and leaves for a really natural look. You DON¹T want to use plastic covering as this will never allow the soil to get better. Your plants will forever be dependent on you supplying fertilizers. You DON¹T want to dig up the sod, as this will: 1)expose weed seeds that had been dormant and 2) allowing the grass to decompose using the steps above will work to make the soil better!

Speaking of mulch---Use Melaleuca Mulch! What¹s a ³melaleuca²? It¹s a tree that was introduced by the Army Corps of Engineers in the early 1920¹s and planted around the edges of the Everglades in order to ³dry out the swamps²! It¹s considered a hazardous tree because of its tendency to blow over during wind storms. Sarasota County prohibits the planting of it. By using Melaleuca mulch, you will not only be helping to eliminate this pest of a tree, but you¹ll NOT be using cypress mulch. What¹s the problem with using cypress mulch? The bald cypress trees of Florida are being harvested at an alarming rate for the sole purpose of mulch. The enormous quantities of cypress mulch being produced are a threat to the very survival of this native tree. Melaleuca mulch is a wonderful, fine mulch and a recent study has determined that of all the available mulch products, termites LEAST like melaleuca! So, for a truly insect-resistant mulch, USE MELALEUCA MULCH! Available at Englewood Landscape Supply (Rt. 776) and Florida Native Plant Nursery (Myakka Rd.Sarasota). For more information, contact ³People for Trees, Inc.² at 426-9752. Do NOT pile mulch around the base of your tree like an anthill. Here¹s the correct way to mulch a tree according to the National Arbor Day Foundation: Environmental News Urban Sprawl When we will we finally say ³enough is enough²? The Arbor Day Foundation (September/October 2000) reported that between 1982 and 1997, developed land grew by 36 percent but the population only grew by 14 percent in this same time period. So ³growth² is not always growth that is needed to accommodate people as the builders and developers would have you believe, but rather it¹s growth to accommodate them! Urbanization of every square inch of land does not have to be accepted and there are more movements across the country that are simply saying, ³enough is enough!² For example, a group called ³Vermont Forum of Sprawl² was formed due to the number of trees that were being lost and replaced with condominiums. People traveling to Vermont expecting to see the spectacular colors when the leaves change in the fall see instead the bland outlines of condos! Sprawl creates congestion, crowds, and destroys diversity. So we either need to develop some alternatives to sprawling or develop a lot more patience and get used to monoculture!

And did you know ... that the average American baby uses 20-25 mature trees worth of disposable diapers before becoming potty-trained? This means that about 20 BILLION diapers ANNUALLY end up in our landfills where they will take 500 years to decompose. Plus, the diapers contain, of course, untreated human waste. UGH! But there¹s hope! According to Audubon Magazine ( March 2003) some 500 families in Santa Clarita California will take part in a diaper-recycling pilot program. Dirty diapers will be turned into plastic,oil filters, roof shingles, and wallpaper! (Visit www.knowaste.com to learn more about this process.) Of course, good ol¹ cloth diapers could be used and eliminate the landfill problem altogether.

Did you know...that the number one killer of trees is due to construction damage?

But believe it or not, trees CAN BE saved during construction!

• Richard A. Lockhart: ralockhart@ci.north-port.fl.us
• Barbara L. Gross - Chair: blgross@ci.north-port.fl.us
• Fred Tower - Vice Chair: ftower@ci.north-port.fl.us
• Rue Berryman: rberryman@ci.north-port.fl.us
• Vanessa Carusone: vcarusone@ci.north-port.fl.us