‘The Larches’ near Buckingham pictured in late winter from US 63. PHOTO COURTESY OF GEORGE KADRMAS

Arbor Day is a national holiday that recognizes the importance of trees. It is celebrated on the last Friday of April – today, April 25 – and is commemorated by planting trees. Arbor Day is credited to Julious Sterling Morton, a zealous lover of trees, who settled on 160 acres of treeless land in the Nebraska territory in the 1850s. 

Morton planted an apple orchard, peach, plum, and pear trees, plus cottonwoods, evergreens, beeches, and more on his farm. He encouraged others to plant trees. The first Arbor Day was celebrated on April 10, 1872 when an estimated one million trees were planted in Nebraska. Within 20 years of its creation, the holiday was celebrated across the country. 

Early settlers in northern Tama County saw the need for planting trees as well. The old stand of larch trees just southwest of Buckingham and east of Highway 63 was established by John Trowbridge Ames, an early settler of Buckingham Township. ‘The Larches’ was a favorite beauty spot in the area for years.

Ames was born in 1819 in Massachusettes. and grew up on a farm near Buffalo, NY. At 20, he took up a sailor’s life for a time, then became a teacher in Wisconsin. He was lured to California by the gold rush in 1850 but returned to Wisconsin.

He married Mary Reed in 1854, sold his belongings and the young couple ventured west, settling in Buckingham Township. John and Mary had seven children and acquired over 1,200 acres of land. Mr. Ames was able to buy the latest implements for farming and good stock for breeding. By the mid 1860s, he had planted about 60 apple trees and a variety of smaller fruits. His farm, known as “The Larches,” got its name from the larch groves that he planted.

An aerial view of John Trowbridge Ames’ larch grove located southwest of Buckingham and east of Highway 63. IMAGE COURTESY OF GEORGE KADRMAS/GOOGLE EARTH

Each farm owned by John T. Ames had larches, catalpas, walnut and evergreen trees. Ames brought two-year-old trees from Wisconsin to plant in Iowa. About 25 varieties including larches, white pine, Norway Spruce, Scotch Pine, birch and walnut trees were planted. His groves at one time covered over 70 acres of land. The trees provided beauty, fuel for heat and lumber for buildings years later.

The larch is a deciduous conifer tree, native to northern parts of North America and Europe. It has needles like spruce trees and other conifers but drops its needles in the fall like deciduous trees. Larches grow from 50 to 80 feet tall and have branches over 20 feet long.

‘The Larches’ were a favorite picnic spot years ago. The remaining larch trees serve as a tribute to John Ames, an early Tama County arborist and pioneer in local tree culture.