It is no secret that trees are a beneficial part of our environment. Whether your trees give fruit, flowers, or shade – each tree has an important job and works to make the World that we live in a better and healthier place.
During the winter months, it can be difficult to get motivated enough to go outdoors. Even if you have to go to work or take kids to school, leaving the warm and cozy house is a chore. This is the time of year when our body clocks tell us to hibernate and stay inside.
The weather is cold and gray, it is still dark when we wake up in the morning, and it is very tempting to stay inside. But, getting outdoors for just 15 minutes per day can have a tremendous impact on our overall health and well-being.
If you have trees planted in your yard that are evergreen, it can be a lot easier to get motivated to go outside. Look through the window at greenery is very comforting and inviting. In fact, the International Society of Arboriculture recently published a report that listed the many benefits of trees:
- The air that we breathe is full of pollutants from the various machinery and equipment that we use to power our World. Cars, factories, and giant buildings all put pollutants into the air that dramatically reduce the quality of our air. But, one grove of 100 trees will pull nearly 500 pounds of pollutants out of the air each year. Planting more trees, means cleaner air!
- The USDA did a study and found that those neighborhoods where several trees have been planted and cared for report fewer incidents of domestic violence. In neighborhoods where the majority of the landscape is buildings, had a much higher rate of overall violence. Community gardens are a great way to positively impact this statistic.
- The NIH is an organization charged with collecting and analyzing data on the overall health and wellness of our Country, and the things that have an impact. In a recent study, the NIH found that families who visit public parks more consistently meet the daily recommendation for physical activity than families who don’t. If you live in an area where you can easily get to a public park, make it a priority to do so every day.
Talk with your professional landscaper about which areas in your yard could use some more trees. If every home planted just one tree, the impact on the air quality and overall health of our population would be significantly better.
