by Bea Peterson
Several members of the Rensselaer Land Trust, plus the Tamarac High School Biology Club, DEC and other volunteers, planted 300 trees and shrubs last Saturday, May 5, at the Hoosic River Boat Launch in Eagle Bridge. The plants were donated by the DEC nursery in Saratoga.
At least 100 of the trees and shrubs planted last year survived the severe flooding last fall.
The planting was a swan song for the Tamarac Biology Club. According to Biology and Forensics teacher Lisa Parker the Club, with 25 members, is scheduled to be cut from the school budget next year. The Club works on several tree plantings and roadside cleanups every year. This year they have donated over $1,000 to charities through their fund raising efforts. “The kids do a lot, but they get very little publicity,” said Parker. “I’ve told them if you get a lot of publicity, it takes away from the act of giving. Unfortunately, because they have received very little publicity, their Club was cut.” Their other projects include creating portable gardens for food banks, planting flowers around the school and researching animals that are becoming extinct around the world. All the projects are selected by the students.
