Tu Bishvat, (Hebrew for the fifteenth day of the Jewish calendar month Shvat), the Jewish arbor day or “earth day” has a long and varied history in Judaism and Jewish culture. The Torah itself awards fruit trees a special status, warning against their desecration even in times of war. Later, the early rabbis created Tu Bishvat as the “birthday” of all trees as a way of helping farmers to mark the age of their young saplings for the tithing of their fruit. Jewish mystics in 16th century Tsfat extended the metaphor of the birthday of the trees to the renewal of the Tree of Life – of God itself.
Today, Tu Bishvat is most closely associated with the Environment. Tu Bishvat has become a kind of Jewish Earth Day, and is celebrated with tree planting and a special ritual meal called a seder. Increasingly, Jewish environmental activists have viewed Tu Bishvat as both a festival of nature – a joyful acknowledgment and thanksgiving for Creation and the renewal of the natural world – as well as a call to action for the preservation of the Environment and its many gifts to all. Below, we have included links to short, informative articles on Tu Bishvat, links to curricular resources and guides to conducting your own Tu Bishvat seder, and activities to celebrate Tu Bishvat at school.
Tu Bishvat Resource 1: Quick Facts and Articles
Below you can download decorative holiday "Quick Facts" cards that can be easily used on bulletin boards, as place settings, or as informational handouts at your Tu Bishvat event. You can also view short, informative articles on Tu Bishvat.
For additional resources on Judaism and the Environment, please visit our links page.
Tu Bishvat Resource 3: Creative Connections
Looking for good Tu Bishvat themes/discussion ideas? TCI is happy to come to your school to help you present these or other interesting themes and provide you with resources to help you facilitate discussions of your own!
For a holiday resource guide and seder guide on the celebration of Tu Bishvat and related themes on the environment see:
