Fredstrom Elementary Students Plant Over 50 Trees

Ready, Set, Plant!

Young arborists at Fredstrom Elementary planted, danced around, and named more than 50 trees this Arbor Day. Fourth graders teamed up with Lincoln Parks and Recreation, the Arbor Day Foundation, volunteers from UNL and Ameritas, and the LPS sustainability team to plant trees throughout Highland Park, the school’s neighboring green space, and to add two special trees to their own school campus.

Text overlay of "Ready" over a photo of two young girls scooping dirt out of a hole in the ground with shovels. They are wearing gardening gloves and a playground structure can be seen behind them.

Ready

Text overlay of "Set" over a photo of a group of children holding a young tree upright and loosening dirt on the root ball.

Set

Text overlay of "Plant!" over a photo of students and adults pouring mulch out of a wheelbarrow around the base of a young tree.

Plant!

Before the students ever picked up a shovel, they had already started to become tree experts. Fourth grade classes learn about what makes Nebraska unique in their social studies curriculum, with the establishment of Arbor Day being an important feature. The Arbor Day Foundation visited classrooms at Fredstrom to teach students about the many benefits trees provide, and students worked in teams to explore what different species of trees bring to a community. By planting day, they were ready.

Lincoln Parks and Recreation kicked things off with a live demonstration, walking students through every step of planting a strong and healthy tree. Students learned to break up the root ball so the tree could expand its roots and grow strong, check the depth of the hole so the tree sat at ground level, fill in gaps with soil, and surround the base with mulch to prevent weeds and protect against over-mowing. And if the hole was a little too deep? Just add some soil and do the “dirt dance” until it’s level.

  • Break up the root ball at the base of the tree to help the tree expand its roots and grow strong.
  • Check the depth of the hole so the tree is planted at ground level. (If the hole is too deep, add some more soil and perform the "dirt dance" until it's flat!)
  • Place the tree and fill in the gaps with soil.
  • Surround the tree with mulch to prevent weeds and over-mowing
  • Name the tree!
A large group of students and adults pose in front of a "Parks and Recreation Volunteers" trailer. They stand on grass with trees in the background.
Fredstrom students and volunteers
A group of children and adults gather around a freshly planted tree in a park, with educators demonstrating planting techniques.
Lincoln Parks and Recreation demonstrating the tree planting process
Mayor Gaylor Baird speaks to a group of children sitting on grass during a tree-planting event. Several adults stand nearby under a clear blue sky.
Mayor Gaylor Baird speaks to student arborists
A woman and three children garden outdoors, holding shovels and pushing a wheelbarrow full of mulch.
Students and a volunteer getting ready to plant a tree
Children sit in a circle on grass, watching a person plant a young tree. The scene is bright and educational, with trees and a clear blue sky.
Lincoln Parks and Recreation demonstrating the tree planting process
A group of people, including a child and adults, are actively planting a small tree in a sunny field. They are wearing casual clothes and gloves.
Students planting a tree
Children kneel on grass planting a tree, with a wheelbarrow and soil pile nearby, in a park.
Students work together to plant a tree

As the students prepared to get their hands dirty, Mayor Gaylor Baird joined the group and shared some words of encouragement. She shared admiration and appreciation for their efforts on behalf of the Lincoln community, and advised students to keep their momentum even after the planting was over.

This is leadership, you are leaders as you plant these trees, and I expect lots of good leadership to come from each and every one of you."

Mayor Gaylor Baird

Inspired and ready to dig, the Fredstrom fourth graders got to work. With the help of volunteers from the UNL Regional and Community Forestry Program and Ameritas, students shoveled dirt, packed soil, spread mulch, and gave each tree a name. The trees received names ranging from “Mary Cherry” to “Megatron” and “Loraxia.” After planting was complete, Lincoln Parks and Recreation staked and watered each tree.

But, the planting didn’t stop at Highland Park. Thanks to funding from Ameritas, the Arbor Day Foundation sent every student home with a baby tree of their own to plant with their family, providing more than 100 new trees to be planted across the Lincoln community.

This marks LPS’s fourth tree-planting collaboration with the Arbor Day Foundation and Lincoln Parks and Recreation. Each year the partnership continues to grow and get stronger, just like the trees themselves. None of it would be possible without the dedication of staff, volunteers, and the budding student arborists who show what student leadership looks like at LPS.