Johnny Appleseed would be proud: Rotary Club of Mansfield plants 70 trees on Saturday

MANSFIELD — Johnny Appleseed would have been proud to see the tree planting going on Saturday morning along Marion Avenue.

Members of the Rotary Club of Mansfield spread out on a sunny Saturday morning, planting 70 Royal Raindrops Crabapple and Newport Flowering Plums.

“One of the premises of Rotary is to help the environment,” said Scott Young, the service committee chair for the club.

“Certainly by planting trees, it’s a great way to enhance and do that. Having been being a tree farmer myself, as well as a real estate agent, I am behind the mission of what we’re trying to accomplish here,” Young said.

“We’ve got great turnout from the club this morning of people volunteering their time to help us come in and get this done.”

John Chapman — better known as “Johnny Appleseed” — lived in and around Mansfield for 20 years from 1810 to 1830.

Alta Florist & Greenhouse in June donated 100 trees to the Mansfield Shade Tree Commission to mark the centennial of its business.

The local Rotary Club, which celebrated its centennial in 2020, agreed to handle the planting.

The Clearfork Reservoir area, which lost many trees due to the storms of 2022, received 30 trees — 10 Burr Oak and 20 London Plane trees. Those trees were planted by Lexington Scout Troop #152 with the assistance of leaders, reservoir staff and Rotary Club members.

Josh Maurer, one of the co-owners of Alta, was in attendance to watch the process begin as the trees were planted along the city right-of-way between the sidewalk and the street.

“These are decorative street trees, so that you’re looking at under 20, 25 feet (in height) at their full maturity,” said Maurer, whose 100-year-old business is located at  935 S. Home Road in Mansfield.

An auger helped to dig the holes as Rotarians used shovels to fully prepare each site and place the trees into the spaces. The city will begin to water the trees on Monday.

“We were getting ready to push the order button on free giveaways for different things, umbrellas and whatnot. We thought instead of something that’s going to last you maybe six months or a year in your car, why not give back to the community and donate trees that are going to be here for hundreds of years to come,” Mauer told City Council in June.

Both Maurer and co-owner Michael Henry are long-time members of the Mansfield Shade Tree Commission.

In June, Mansfield Mayor Tim Theaker praised the donation.