Maine Tree Club Offers Outings and Education
Contact: Amy Witt, 207-780-4205
PORTLAND, Me.– Maine citizens and visitors can learn more about one of the state’s greatest resources by joining the Maine Tree Club, an educational project designed for people of all ages to learn about trees. University of Maine Cooperative Extension, the Maine Forest Service and the Pine Tree State Arboretum coordinate the program.
The annual registration fee for the Maine Tree Club is $20 per person, $30 per couple, $35 per family and $65 per group of up to 15. A limited number of Maine Tree Club scholarships are available for those in need. There is no deadline for registration. Request a free informational brochure by calling University of Maine Cooperative Extension at 800-287-1471 or e-mailing lelwell@umext.maine.edu.
The Maine Tree Club is planning at least three outings around the state in 2009 to get people into the woods for hands-on learning and enjoyment. These outings, guided by experts, are planned for the mountains and coastal regions as well as other parts of Maine. Through these outings and twice-monthly fact sheets featuring various Maine tree species, club members will learn to recognize 50 different types of trees over a period of two years and gain skills that can be applied in their own yards and communities.
Participants receive additional materials including a 10X hand lens for close-up viewing of tree parts, an attractive notebook for the tree species fact sheets, a pocket guide to Maine trees and several practical guides related to tree growth and care.
Maine’s trees attract tourists by the thousands, support the state economy, and deliver constant inspiration to area artists, poets and naturalists; they are at the root of Maine’s identity. As one Maine Tree Club member states, “the Maine Tree Club has been a great way to reacquaint myself with the trees I grew up with and for so many years was distant from.”