City Arbor Day Events to Include Professional Tree Climbing Championship

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~Climbers from Several States to Compete~

Professional tree climbers from Maryland, West Virginia and Washington, DC will head to Richmond on Saturday, April 6, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., for the City’s first weekend of Arbor Day festivities at Byrd Park. This year’s festivities at Byrd Park include a competition held by the Mid-Atlantic Chapter International Society of Arboriculture (MAC-ISA).  The contestants are specialists within the arboriculture profession who make a living being suspended from ropes, sometimes more than 100 feet in the air, pruning and maintaining trees. The competition will test their skills in several areas, including speed climbing and aerial rescue. On Sunday the top finishers will compete in the Master’s Challenge at 8 a.m. 
The pros are not the only ones who will be able to climb. There also will be recreational tree climbing for the public from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., as well a tree-care equipment and supply vendors.  
Once again, Richmond has received a Tree City USA designation from the National Arbor Day Foundation. This marks the 22nd consecutive year the City has received this honor. A proclamation from Mayor Dwight C. Jones also will be read.
On April 20, at the Byrd Park Roundhouse, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. the Richmond Tree Stewards will recognize Arbor Day with instructions for maintaining trees, as well as learning how to select, prune, plant and identify species of trees. There also will be activities for children.  
For more information on City services and schedules, please visit www.RichmondGov.com.