Residents of southeast Pennsylvania are invited to celebrate spring at one of five TreeVitalize Great Tree Jamboree events and receive a rebate of up to $25 to plant a tree at home.

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, which spearheads the public/private TreeVitalize effort to plant 20,000 trees in the five-county Philadelphia area, is partnering with the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society on the tree jamborees. The rebates being offered are for southeastern Pennsylvania residents and cover 25 percent of the cost of a tree purchased, up to $25 dollars.

There is a Great Tree Jamboree event in each of the five counties this spring:

· Delaware County: April 22, 10 a.m. to noon, at the Rose Tree Park Earth Day celebration, Media. Local officials will plant a tree. A tree sale, plus tree care and maintenance tips will also be offered.

· Chester County: April 29, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at the Warwick Outdoor Fest in Warwick County Park, Pottstown. There will be several family-oriented activities and demonstrations at the event. A tree sale, plus tree care and maintenance tips also will be offered.

· Montgomery County: April 29, 8 a.m. to 11 a.m., at the Hatfield Community Earth Day at the Public Works Complex in Hatfield. This is a community service day involving local Boy Scout troops and volunteers. Rebate coupons for trees will be available.

· Bucks County: May 6, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., at the Peddlers Village Strawberry Festival in Lahaska. Visit the festival for children's activities, tree care demonstrations and a tree sale.

· Philadelphia: , May 14, 10 a.m. to noonat the Friends Hospital Garden Day at Friends Hospital on Roosevelt Boulevard. The event includes tree care and maintenance tips, public tours of the hospital grounds and a plant sale in the greenhouse.

Other TreeVitalize partners are the state Department of Environmental Protection, Aqua Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Eagles, PECO, U.S. Forest Service, Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, Morris Arboretum, William Penn Foundation, Pennsylvania Landscape and Nursery Association, Penn State Cooperative Extension, Fairmount Park Commission, and county and local governments.

For more information, visit the Treevitalize website.

4/21/2006