Trees at Celery Fields get some birthday TLC

Sometimes, trees need some tender loving care, too.

Temple Emanu-El Religious School students celebrated “The Birthday of The Trees” Feb. 5 at Celery Fields.

Students and families joined together to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Tu B’Shevat, the traditional birthday of the trees and celebration of nature.

The celebration started with a song followed by a lesson from Snait Ben-Herut. She explains that in Israel the almond trees start projecting their beauty and there it is the first sign of spring blooming.

“This is a Jewish month and many people wonder why we celebrate the birthday of the trees in the middle of the winter,” said Ben-Herut. “In Israel, which is where this holiday comes from, at that time of the year there’s one tree that starts blooming and it’s the almond tree.” 

The students each received a small iridescent bag of mixed nuts before heading off to the various hands-on activities throughout Celery Fields. To honor the holiday, the kids spread hay on the trails, used binoculars to do some bird watching and played games. 

“Trees are very important to our lives because we need them to survive,” said Zach Heller.