Davey Tree, Oprah Partner for 'Reading Takes Root'

The Davey Tree Expert Co. helped Oprah Winfrey celebrate this week's conclusion of her popular daytime talk show Monday by unveiling a program to plant 25,000 "reading trees" in communities across the country.

To honor Oprah's 25-year legacy, Davey Tree partnered with Target and The Heart of America Foundation to plant 25 large oak trees on school grounds across the U.S. that also were undergoing library renovations. The program was announced on Oprah's show Monday.

The initial live oak tree planting of the "Reading Takes Root" program took place May 16 at the KIPP Believe School in New Orleans. Footage of the planting ran on Oprah's show Monday to the host's surprise.

The intent of the plantings, according to Davey Tree, is to encourage children to read by providing a shaded place to sit down with a good book.

"Davey is honored to celebrate The Oprah Winfrey Show in this socially responsible initiative to plant reading trees for children in communities across the country,”  Karl Warnke, Davey’s CEO, said in a press release. "As these trees take root, we also hope the air will become cleaner, the cooling effects of shade will become broader, and the environmental and economic future of our nation’s communities will strengthen."

Davey Tree plans to plant 25,000 more trees across the U.S. as part of the program, which the Kent tree company said has the goal of driving the growth of happier, healthier communities.

The Oprah Winfrey Show concludes its 25-year run with the final show Wednesday.