Copyright ©2014 – Larry James. This information is adapted from Larry’s Wedding Website and Wedding Blog. You will find more than 475 pages of Wedding ideas, tips, ceremonies, and more at http://www.celebrateintimateweddings.com
The tree planting ceremony can be used to symbolize the joining together of two individuals or the joining of two families.
On a table behind the Wedding Officiant/Minister you would have a potted tree or sapling, something perhaps with special meaning to the couple or taken from a special place. You would also have two small buckets of dirt, two gardening trowels as well as a small watering can placed on the table. Planting a tree – even a small sapling – can be messy so most couples prefer to have the tree already planted and at the appropriate time use two small watering cans to only water the tree.
After the ceremony, the couple plants the tree in at their home or a special location to symbolize the putting down of roots, longevity and strengths in their marriage.
Watering the Tree Ceremony
Wedding Officiant: _Bride_ and _Groom_ will now take part in a Watering the Tree Ceremony, to symbolize the roots of their relationship, and the continued growth of their love, as they become each others family today. It will symbolically represent the growth of their love for one another. Please follow me to the table behind me.
Love is the essence of human experience and emotion. It is the root of all and everything we, as humans, do. Love enriches our experience, and fills our lives with meaning. It gives us a firm base from which to grow, to learn, and to change. Your Love must weather the challenges of daily life and the passage of time.
Just like the tree they have planted, marriage requires constant nurturing and nourishment. As they provide the sun, soil, and water for this tree, they will provide the encouragement, trust, and love needed on a daily basis to consciously nurture and nourish their connection to each other.
Wedding Officiant: Let your relationship and your love for each other be like this tree you have planted today. Let it grow tall and strong. Let it stand tall during the winds and rains and storms, and come through the desert sun unscathed. Like a tree, your marriage must be resilient.
Wedding Officiant: Let us now provide some water for the tree.
Wedding Officiant: Remember to nourish each other, with words of encouragement, trust, and love. This is needed on a daily basis so you each can grow and reach your fullest potential – just like this tree. The Bride and Groom will plant this tree in their backyard to always be a symbol of their love for each other.
(Optional) Prayer for the Watering the Tree Ceremony
Wedding Officiant: Dear God, we stand before you in awe as we witness the miracle of your creation – this young tree. Unique and original, just like the bride and groom and unlike anything that ever was before or will be. Each began with a single seed, concealing a complex potential that miraculously unfolds with each passing day. We pray that the roots of this tree will gain hold and spread deep, drawing nourishment from the fertile earth.
We pray that the trunk of this tree will grow healthy and strong, withstanding the forces of nature and to be able to support its canopy of branches and leaves. So may this couple possess a healthy body and a strong moral spirit, holding steadfast to their own integrity and understanding of the tempests and temptations that could weaken them. They will watch these branches bud and blossom, giving shade and beauty for all to enjoy. Help them to nourish and nurture this tree so that they may both mature and prosper, fulfilling to the greatest extent possible the potential for which God placed them on earth. And so it is. And so it is. Amen.
