Norris celebrates Earth Day with cleanup of Arboretum
Members of Norris Boy Scout Troop 73 work on cleanup of the Norris Commons Arboretum area as an Earth Day activity on Saturday, April 19. (photo:G. Chambers Williams III )
The volunteers participating in the event, including seven members and two leaders of Norris Boy Scout Troop 73, spent the morning spreading mulch, moving fallen branches to the roadside, and completing other cleanup and maintenance tasks, said city Councilman Chuck Nicholson, who is a longtime member and chairman of the Tree Commission.
A pizza lunch was provided at the end of the cleanup.
The Tree Commission recently planted three new trees in the Commons Arboretum “that are available for adoption as an honor tree or memorial tree,” Nicholson said.
Those trees include are a mountain camellia (Stewartia ovata), American smoke tree (Cotinus obovatus) and American basswood (Tilia americana).
All three are native to East Tennessee and rarely stocked by nurseries, he said.
“The mountain camellia and smoke tree are very showy when mature, and the basswood attracts numerous pollinators,” Nicholson said.
“Please contact us directly if you are interested in adopting any of these trees.”
