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AMERICAN FORESTRY 



BALTIMORE'S experience with 

 her street shade trees should 

 be a warning to other cities 

 throughout the country, many, 

 aye most, of which have followed the 

 same lack of system and carelessness in 

 planting of trees. 



A year ago Baltimore awakened to 

 the need of a city forester. It was then 

 found that of the 75,000 trees in the 

 city's streets almost 60,000 were of un- 

 desirable species and that most of the 

 trees had been improperly planted. 

 This fault has resulted in some 20,000 

 of the mature trees being in a decadent 

 condition. 



Although the city forester has been 

 at work only eighteen months and is 

 handicapped by an inadequate appro- 

 priation, great improvement is apparent. 

 The situation is described in an article 

 in this issue. 



City officials are urged by the Ameri- 

 can Forestry Association to give more 

 thought to shade tree conditions in 

 the miinicipalities of which they are 

 in charge. They will find that in 

 practically every case the trees are 

 being neglected, that most of them are 

 improperly nourished, that species un- 

 fitted for climatic or street paving con- 

 ditions have been planted ; and that con- 

 siderable damage, particularly in the 

 smaller cities and towns, is being done 

 by telephone, telegraph and electric 

 light wires. 



The value of beautiful shade trees 

 and well-shaded streets is not properly 

 appreciated. It should be apparent 

 that well-shaded streets attract resi- 

 dents and thus maintain or increase 

 real estate values and that no com- 

 munity ever loses by attention being 

 paid to beautifying and improving it. 



IT IS hoped that by the time this is 

 read, Minnesota will have carried an 

 amendment to the State constitu- 

 tion, providing for the establishment 

 of State forests on State lands which are 

 unfitted for agriculture. The voters of 

 the State cast their ballots for or against 

 this measure on November 3. If public 

 demand for a good thing has value in 

 forming the opinions of the voters the 

 amendment should have an overpower- 

 ing majority. For some weeks there 

 has been waged in the State a cleverly 

 planned and admirably conducted cam- 

 paign for arousing interest in the meas- 

 ure. This campaign was directed by 

 the Minnesota State Forestry Associa- 

 tion. Various civic bodies lent their 

 aid, women's clubs in every town where 

 they are established had their members 

 personally communicate with influential 

 citizens and ask their support of the 

 measure, the railroads, the telephone 



and telegraph companies gave their 

 assistance, while the newspapers were 

 particularly active in doing the in- 

 valuable publicity work needed to rivet 

 the attention of the voters on the fact 

 that the amendment would be upon 

 their ballots, and what it meant to the 

 State. 



Perhaps the most effective work, 

 however, was done by the children. 

 The Governor proclaimed a State 

 Forests Day for the schools and this 

 was observed by every public school in 

 the State. The five hundred thousand 

 pupils addressed letters, furnished by 

 the Minnesota Forestry Association, to 

 their parents, asking them to vote for 

 the amendment. At this writing there 

 is every indication that the amendment 

 will be carried and if it is, it will mark 

 a big forward step in the conservation 

 of the forests of Minnesota. 



Changes of Address 



Members of the American Forestry Association are requested to send notifica- 

 tion of any change in address so that the American Forestry Magazine and other 

 mail will not be delayed in reaching them. 



Such notices are desired before the 25th of each month so that the address 

 may be changed for the monthly mailing of the magazine. 



