The U.S. planted 220 million trees during the 1930s Dust Bowl. Nearly a century later, drought was permanently wiped off the map
In response to the Dust Bowl crisis, the U.S. government set in motion an ambitious tree-planting scheme.
The Dust Bowl remains one of the worst environmental disasters in American history. Striking the Great Plains during the 1930s, it was fueled by years of intensive farming, severe drought, and powerful winds that stripped away the fertile topsoil, devastating agricultural operations across the heartland of the United States. In response to the crisis, the federal government launched an ambitious tree-planting program.
More than eight decades later, some of those tree shelterbelts are still standing. The environmental catastrophe proved to be a pivotal moment in driving large-scale tree planting across the U.S. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt launched the Prairie States Forestry Project, planting long rows of trees stretching from Texas to Canada to slow the wind and stabilize vulnerable farmland.
A ‘wall of trees’
According to the U.S.’s National Drought Mitigation Center, the Dust Bowl was the result of prolonged drought combined with poor land management practices across the Great Plains. The destruction of vast areas of farmland forced many residents to leave their homes in search of work and new opportunities elsewhere.
Roosevelt’s ‘wall of trees’ was designed to protect farms by reducing wind speeds. The shelterbelts helped curb topsoil erosion, limit soil moisture loss, shield crops from wind damage, and reduce snow drifting during the winter months. When properly designed, these windbreaks can also enhance crop growth. In addition, they provide shade for livestock and create habitat for birds, bees, and other wildlife. Many of these plantings are now around 90 years old, yet they continue to play an important ecological role today.
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