President Plants Tree at White House in Honor of Arbor Day
North Lawn
Friday, April 29,2005

           An American chestnut tree was planted at the White House to mark the 133rd annual celebration of National Arbor Day. President George W. Bush helped plant the tree Friday, April 29, on the White House North Lawn, along with US Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns, and Marshal Case, President and CEO of The American Chestnut Foundation, headquartered in Bennington, VT. The tree was grown at the Chestnut Foundation’s Meadowview research farms in Virginia.

Case called the planting of the tree the beginning of "the greatest environmental achievement of this century."

Walking across the White House lawn after the ceremonial planting, Case said he and the President talked about trees. President Bush told Case he has planted 16,000 trees at his Texas ranch.

“The American Chestnut Foundation has worked very closely with the Agriculture Department to come up with a disease-resistant strain of the American chestnut,” said President Bush, referring to TACF’s newly established partnership with the U.S. Forest Service to plant trees from TACF’s Meadowview Research Farms on US forest lands.

“And [Marshal Case] says we're making good progress, and that one day the American chestnut, which had been wiped out by blight, will be coming back. And this is our little part to help it come back. Our message is to our fellow citizens: Plant trees — it's good for the economy and it's good for the environment."

“I thanked him for having the foresight to focus on the value of the American chestnut," Case said.

The 15-foot American chestnut tree planted at the White House was chosen by TACF because it is free of blight, and has tested positive for a high level of blight resistance, according to Dr. Fred Hebard, TACF Plant Pathologist. It is fairly large, Hebard said, and its good form will allow it to be highly visible early in its life.

“I think it's fantastic that the President chose to plant a chestnut tree at the White House,” said Hebard. “Especially a tree from the American Chestnut Foundation's breeding program. The President's planting will help promote the tree and the work of the foundation. All of us at the Meadowview Research Farms are very proud that we were able to provide this tree for the President.”

The American Chestnut Foundation has 13 State Chapters, including one in Georgia. State Chapters are run by volunteers who seek flowering American chestnut trees in the wild, and also grow and pollinate American chestnut trees to promote TACF’s research.

TACF is nearing completion of the first stage of its goal to restore the American chestnut tree to its native range within the forests of the eastern United States. Once a keystone species on nine million acres of eastern forests, the American chestnut was nearly wiped out during the first half of the 20^th century by the blight, a fungus infection accidentally imported from Asia, to which our native chestnuts have very little resistance. Using a breeding program developed by its founders, TACF expects its first generation of highly blight-resistant American chestnut trees to be ready for initial forest test-planting within the next few years.

Not only was this a wonderful day for chestnut, it was a wonderful day for the environment — in the same week, the ivory billed woodpecker, a bird that once benefited from chestnut trees, was discovered in Arkansas, and removed from the extinct species list. My hopes are that the chestnut, and the ivory billed woodpecker, will once again become strong species rather than rare sights

— Marshal Case

The Ceremony

THE PRESIDENT: First of all, I'm honored -- we're honored to be here with the Secretary of Agriculture, as well as Marshal Case, who is head of the American Chestnut Foundation. We are planting an American chestnut tree here at the White House. This is the 133rd year of Arbor Day. Our message is to our fellow citizens, plant trees -- it's good for the economy and it's good for the environment.

As well, Marshal informs me that the American Chestnut Foundation has worked very closely with the Agriculture Department to coming up with a disease-resistant strain of the American chestnut. And he says we're making good progress, and that one day the American chestnut, which had been wiped out by blight, will be coming back. And this is our little part to help it come back.

So, Mr. Secretary, are you prepared?

SECRETARY JOHANNS: I am ready. Let's --

THE PRESIDENT: A man known for shoveling a lot of things. (Laughter.)

SECRETARY JOHANNS: Exactly.

THE PRESIDENT: Ready to go?

SECRETARY JOHANNS: Yes, I am ready.

THE PRESIDENT: All right, let's do it.