VALLEY CITY, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) – The Valley City Beautification Committee, a sub-committee of the Valley City Commission, will be hosting two spring tree and shrub pruning seminars to celebrate Earth Day on April 22nd. Both of the seminars are free and open to the public and will be taught by Mary O’Neill, Community Forestry Specialist for the North Dakota Forest Service Field Office in Lisbon.

The first seminar will be held on the campus of Valley City State University at 1:30 pm. Interested parties should meet at the VCSU gazebo located just east of Graichen Gym on College Street SW. This seminar will focus on the safe and correct way to prune or cut back larger, more mature trees.

The evening session will be held at the Hi-Line Prairie Gardens and Orchard at the corner of 5th Avenue and 9th Street NW at 6pm. This seminar will focus on younger trees and shrubs. Both seminars will last approximately one hour. Please wear face masks and practice social distancing for your protection.

The Valley City Beautification Committee places flower planters along the Downtown District of Central and Main and participates annually in City Clean-up. In addition to maintaining previous tree plantings, the committee works with the schools, the city and the Park District to review areas along streets, in parks, and along flood walls to determine where new tree plantings are needed and which trees or shrubs would be appropriate for those areas. The Committee also works with youth and service organizations to help with plantings or city clean-up projects.