Nebraska City, Neb., February 12, 1999--History will be made at The National Arbor Day Foundation's Arbor Day Farm, Nebraska City, Neb., with the first harvest of hybrid poplars grown specifically as fuelwood for heating and cooling. The harvest of the seven-year-old trees will begin Monday, February 15 and continue throughout the week.
"This harvest is significant for several reasons," said Chris Aden, general manager of Arbor Day Farm. "Arbor Day Farm is unique for being the only site in the nation with a conference facility, Lied Conference Center, that is heated and cooled by burning renewable fuelwood grown in plantations on the grounds. Wood-fired boilers at Lied Conference Center produce the steam that provides heating, cooling, and domestic hot water for the facility."
Aden said that the hybrid poplars are fast-growing trees that produce a large amount of woodchips and that sprout again from the cut trunks to quickly begin a new growing rotation. "In terms of good conservation and environmental stewardship, this harvest is a win-win situation," he added. "While they're growing, these trees produce great quantities of oxygen and help reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide."
Arbor Day Farm, part of the original estate of Arbor Day founder J. Sterling Morton, is owned and operated by The National Arbor Day Foundation. The Foundation is a nonprofit education organization dedicated to tree planting and environmental stewardship.
Note to Editors: The Foundation invites representatives of the media to Arbor Day Farm on Tuesday, Feb. 16, 1999, at 1:30 p.m. to observe the field harvest in action, tour the plant and facilities at Lied Conference Center, and enjoy a brief reception in the Center's lobby. Please meet Foundation staff at 1:30 p.m. in the lobby of Lied Conference Center, 2700 Sylvan Road, Nebraska City, Nebraska.