Your local Soil and Water Conservation Districts are once again holding their annual tree sales, and the Meigs and Gallia SWCD’s are sure to have a tree or packet to please almost any homeowner or landowner.

Meigs County’s tree sale is little changed from last year. This year’s hardwood offerings include black cherry, black walnut, northern red oak and sugar maple, packets of 25 seedlings for $17. Coniferous trees including bald cypress, Colorado blue spruce and Scotch pine are available in packets of 25 for $17 each, while Canadian hemlock, Douglas fir and eastern white pine are available in packets of 25 for $15 each.

There is a very limited supply of American chestnut seedlings available, packet of five trees for $15. These seedlings are from the West Virginia State Tree Nursery and are considered pure American chestnut. This species has shown a resistance to chestnut blight, but it is too soon to claim resistance. The American chestnut seedlings are available on a first-come basis.

Offering American chestnut gives local landowners and homeowners an opportunity to help restore this majestic tree its native range. Prior to being nearly wiped out by chestnut blight, American chestnuts were very important to wildlife, providing much of the fall mast for whitetail deer and wild turkey. They were also excellent for timber.

The Homeowners Tree Packet consisting of 10 trees, two each of Colorado blue spruce, eastern redbud, Lynwood gold forsythia, red maple and white flowering dogwood, is available for $15.

Fruit trees include Yellow Delicious Apple trees, Early Elberta Peach trees, and Bartlett Pear (two trees each for $17, and shiitake mushrooms (one kit for $25).

In addition there are packets of ground-covering English ivy, pachysandra and crown vetch, erosion control grass mixes, bird and butterfly seed mixes, wildlife food plot seed mixes, bird and bat boxes, and marking flags.

The deadline for ordering trees or seed packets from the Meigs SWCD is Feb. 29 with trees being available for pickup around the second weekend in April. For an order form or for more information, contact the Meigs SWCD at 740-992-4282 or visit www.meigsswcd.com.

The Gallia SWCD is offering coniferous trees include eastern white pine, 20 small seedlings for $10 or 10 large seedlings for $15; Colorado blue spruce, five four-year-old seedlings for $15

Fruit tree offerings include Red Rome Beauty Apple, Yellow Delicious Apple, Early Elberta Peach, and Red Haven Peach. Those are sold in packets of two for $20.

There is also a wild game packet consisting of two each white oak, persimmon and sawtooth oak, and a fall foliage packet consisting of two each sweetgum, blackgum and red mulberry. Those are also sold in packets for $15. A spring flowering packet is available for $12 and consists of two each white flowering dogwood, American crabapple and eastern redbud. Mulberry trees do a great job in attracting such beautiful bird species as cedar waxwings.

The deadline for ordering trees from the Gallia SWCD is March 22 with trees being available around the second week of April. For more information or for order forms contact the Gallia SWCD at 740-446-6173.

Both districts will notify their customers when orders come in.

Jim Freeman is wildlife specialist for the Meigs Soil and Water Conservation District. He can be contacted weekdays at 740-992-4282 or at jim.freeman@oh.nacdnet.net