More than any Jewish holiday or day of the year, Tu Bishvat is identified with Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael-Jewish National Fund. It is Arbor Day, and thousands of young saplings are planted in Israel’s woods and forests, to take root and grow into part of our country’s flourishing green belt. The custom of planting trees is relatively new, originating in the modern era with the motivation of the early pioneers who settled the land. In 1904, Professor Otto Warburg proposed establishing a Zionist Fund for the purpose of planting olive trees on lands redeemed by KKL-JNF. The development into a tradition is to the credit of the Teachers’ Association of Eretz Yisrael. In 5665 (1904), it decreed Tu Bishvat as an Arbor Festival for tree planting in all the schools throughout the country. This is the origin of the truly beautiful ceremony, which has been observed annually since then and persists to this day.

Tu Bishvat is therefore a day when, with the help of KKL-JNF, Israel turns its focus to its natural heritage, and devotes time and attention to the land. It is also a day deeply rooted in Jewish history. We would like to share with you the following explanations of Tu Bishvat’s historical origins, its spiritual significance, and the symbolism of trees in Jewish literature.

The fifteenth of Shvat is mentioned for the first time in the Mishna (1^st-2^nd century) as one of the four New Years of the Jewish calendar: “There are four new years…the first of Tishrei is the new year for [the counting of] years, the seven-year cycle, Jubilees, and for planting and vegetables. The first of Shvat is the new year of the trees, according to the House of Shammai. According to the House of Hillel, it is the fifteenth of Shvat” (tractate Rosh Hashana, folio 2b). We see that this is not an “arbor day,” but rather a date used by farmers as a basis to calculate the annual yield of fruits, in order to know the amount of the tithe that the Bible requires. It also determines the beginning and end of the first three and four years of the tree’s growth, during which it is forbidden to eat fruit from the trees.

Why was there a need for two new years, the first of Tishrei for planting, and the fifteenth of Shvat for trees?

The Talmud states that the reason for choosing Tu Bishvat is because by that date, “most of the rain has already fallen.” In other words, winter has already passed its peak, and fresh new growth can begin. Spring is drawing nigh, and the trees are taking their first steps on the road to their goal – bearing fruits. Until now, the tree received water and nourishment from the earth – now it is transformed into a giver of fruits. Its potential for growth begins to be realized. So too, Tu Bishvat, is a time for the realization of growth potential, in anticipation of the spring.

Tu Bishvat is the New Year for trees. It marks another year that the trees were planted firmly in the earth. Planting expresses our being rooted in our homeland. Living on the land, in the Land of Israel, is different than the forty years of wandering in the desert in two major ways: Firstly, we are no longer in an interim state, which is neither here nor   there. We know exactly where we belong – we are not torn by longings for the past, and we are not waiting for some better future. And secondly, living in Israel, we are no longer limited solely to intellectual and abstract means of expression  – we can also express our physical abilities – tilling the earth, planting trees, and protecting our homeland’s eco-system and its magnificent natural beauty.

Over time, carobs became very identified with Tu Bishvat. To this day, Jews in the Diaspora eat carobs from Israel on Tu Bishvat as a means of experiencing their connection to the Land of Israel. Here is an interpretation of a Talmudic legend that teaches us what we can learn from the carob tree. In tractate Ta’anit, the Talmud tells us about Honi Hame’agel, who was befuddled all his days by the biblical verse: “When God returned the exiles to Zion, we were as dreamers.” Honi could not understand – this verse refers to the Babylonian exile, which lasted seventy years. Can a man dream for seventy years?

Once he was walking on the road, and he saw someone planting a carob tree. Honi said to him: This tree that you are planting, when will it bear fruit? The man answered: Seventy years from now. Honi retorted: Do you think you will be alive seventy years from now? The man responded: When I was born, I found a world full of carob trees. Just as my ancestors planted trees for me, so too, I plant for my children.”