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22 Friday, January 24, 1986 • • THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
INSIGHT
.04
Get ready to
Tu b'Shevat: Israel,
Diaspora Think Spring
MAKE TRACKS
to fantastic savings
at
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Israeli youngsters plant JNF trees on a hillside near Jerusalem.
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BEAR FAIR
JAN 31-FEB 2
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••• ■ •••
Jerusalem — Tu b'Shevat,
which Jews throughout the
Diaspora will celebrate begin-
ning at sundown on Saturday, is
an ancient agrarian holiday, re-
flecting how our ancestors lived
in close harmony with the cycles
of nature.
According to Jewish law, eat-
ing from fruit trees was permit-
ted only after the fifth year of
planting, following the fruit's
being consecrated in the fourth.
The 15th day of Shevat was set-
tled upon as the legal "birthday"
of all trees.
Customs associated today with
the holiday are recent innova-
tions associated with 16th and
17th Century mystic Kabbalists.
They encouraged the eating of
the fruits of Israel as an expres-
sion of longing for the Jewish
homeland, and even created a
Tu b'Shevat seder. This special
ceremony calls for a table set in
festive white, lit by candles and
complemented by the frangr-
ances of myrtle leaves and flow-
ers. Four cups of wine and
blessings over a variety of fruits
are all part of this Seder.
Tu b'Shevat signals the com-
ing of spring in Israel, a time
when the rains have let up and
the flowers are making their
debut on the hillsides and the
almond trees. Tu b'Shevat cele-
brations began in Israel on the
19th day of Tevat, which this
year fell on Dec. 31, and will
continue through Sunday. The
first day of the celebrations also
marked the 84th birthday of the
Jewish National Fund, the
organization responsible for af-
forestation and land reclamation
in Israel. The celebrations began
with a central tree-planting
ceremony on the shoreline of the
• Sea of Galilee. Educators later
held a symposium on the work-
ing of the land with.JNF leaders
and government officials.
During Tu b'Shevat, 200,000
schoolchildren, teachers, Ethio-'
pian immigrants and Israelis
from all walks of life are ex-
pected to plant tree saplings at
40 JNF sitesfrom the Golan
Heights in the north to, Eilat in
the south before the holiday is
over. Included among the many
festivities are ceremonies in
JNF forests with government
ministers and Knesset members.
In major municipalities, shop-
ping malls feature JNF
carnival-style displays of forest
furniture.
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In America, Jews all over the
country participate in Tu
b'Shevat celebrations by con-
tributing towards JNF-
sponsored tree-planting activi-
ties and fulfilling the ancient
mitzvah of creating new life on
Israel's sacred soil. Children and
adults use the traditional JNF
blue box to collect funds for the
planting of trees, thus
strengthening the, ties between
Israel and the Diaspora.
When Israelis plant trees at
to b'Shevat sites, they too are
participating in a most mean-
ingful Tu b'Shevat tradition.
And it is most appropriate that
these activities occur under the
auspices of JNF.
Just as Israelis are aware that
Tu b'Shevat symbolizes the re-
settlemet and regeneration of
the land, they also cannot help
but associate the holiday with
the accomplishments of JNF's
afforestation program. This pro-
gram has resulted in 170 mil-
lion trees being- planted since
1901, and an additional four to
five million planted each year.
Afforestation, however, has
meant mere to Israel's land than
just the aesthetic 'beauty which
trees provide to JNF forests,
parks, playgrounds, and picnic
areas. Trees have played a
major role in all of JNF's efforts
to reclaim the entire land of Is-
rael. •
In the Negev, trees increase
oxygen and break the fierce des-
ert wind velocity, thereby
preserving the soil. In the
Galilee, in northern Israel, trees
stand as barriers against winds
that ravage slopes of their fer-
tile layers of top soil. The
eucalyptus tree, which absorbs
enormous amounts of water, has
been of great aid in swamp
drainage and making the land
fit for agricultural use. When
one considers it, the benefits of
trees are innumerable, espe-
cially to a small country like Is-
rael, -which needs to • !Ake
maximum use of its natural re-
sources. Trees mean more mois-
ture in the soil, prevent a rapid
run-off of rain water, provide
shade, reinvigorate the soil and
air, help •shelter border com-
munities, and provide shelter for
wildlife. In addition, they pro-
vide raw materials for farms
and factories, and offer immig-
rants, many of whom work in
JNF forests, their first economic
foothold in their new land.