Commencing at sunset on Friday and lasting until nightfall on Saturday, Jews around the world will commemorate Tu BiShvat, a non-biblical holiday considered the Jewish New Year for Trees – a celebration which carries great significance in modern Israel.
In Israel, the most common tradition associated with Tu BiShvat is the planting of trees. The planting that occurs on this day of the year coupled with other reforestation projects throughout the year have resulted in Israel being the only country in the world to have an exponential increase in the number of trees in the last century.
The Jewish National Fund (JNF) in Israel is known in Hebrew as Keren Kayemeth L’Yisrael (KKL) and was established in 1901 while the region was still under Turkish rule. The goal of the KKL was to restore the land that was sorely neglected and impoverished and “to make the deserts bloom.” Since then, extremely generous donations have allowed for around 240 million trees to be planted.
Over and above this goal of reforestation and planting trees, the KKL has also invested in the preservation and acquisition of water. A number of the hiking trails in KKL parks have this idea in mind. The water projects include dams, reservoirs, water purification and cleaning up polluted bodies of water. The KKL has also been instrumental in draining malaria-riddled swamplands such as in the Hula Valley in the North.
In recent years, together with ecologists, KKL re-flooded the previously drained area in an ecosystem restoration project to preserve resident wildlife and also to provide a refuge for migratory birds that shelter there twice a year. The environmental Hula project has been such a success that the model has been sought out by other countries with similar needs, even in neighboring countries that do not have diplomatic relations with Israel.
Environmentalists and KKL have been working on restoring water in the city of Kfar Saba in a pilot project that works on a “bio-filter” system. Whereas the winter rainfall was previously lost to the sea, it is now being collected, filtered and treated and then diverted into aquifers with the surplus used on landscaping. Experts then know how to cultivate the land and which trees to introduce to create forests.
This year, Tu B’Shvat comes on the heels of the devastating forest fires in November. Instead of purchasing and planting new trees, donations raised by the JNF and KKL after the fire will be used to purchase firefighting equipment that will hopefully protect the environment in the event of future disasters.
Tu is not a word but two letters of the Hebrew alphabet that together represent the number 15 spelling out ‘t’ and ‘u,’ hence tu. Shvat is the 11th month in the Jewish calendar. So the holiday is “the 15th of Shvat.”
The holiday, unmentioned in the Bible, is touched upon in the Mishnah along with a dispute between the house of Shammai and the house of Hillel as to its proper date. Customs related to this day include trying a new fruit or to eating from the Seven Species found in Deuteronomy 8:8. Kabbalah followers even instituted a Tu BiShvat seder ritual which is growing in popularity.
In the curriculum of most Israeli schools from pre-K through middle school, the emphasis is on trees and all things tree-related during the weeks leading up to Tu BiShvat. School children will bring to school and sample an assortment of dried fruit while individuals or groups will physically plant trees in a 116-year-old tradition.
Happy Tu BiShvat!
“And you shall come to the Land, and you shall plant all kinds of edible trees…” – Leviticus 19:20