296 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



me by a gentleman of wealth and standing, who had been 

 asked to invest some money in the scheme, and when I 

 stated to my visitor that I would discourage such invest- 

 ment, he became greatly exasperated at first, so that I 

 thought him an honest though misguided person. IJut I 

 was undeceived before long, for as soon as the inventor 

 had cooled down he olTered to go halves with me in 

 whatever he could get. 



In closing I cannot, therefore, but warn the tree owner 

 to look into the record of any tree pruner, tree doctor 

 or whatever he may call himself, more carefully than 

 he would into that of a lawyer or physician or veterin- 



:^^:i!S«^ 



THIS MIGHT HAVE BEEN SAVED 



This tree had its cavity filled with cement and stone without regard to 

 the decayed condition of the interior. Soon after treatment the 

 tree broke apart as shown in the photograph. 



arian, before he employs him, for these are examined by 

 the State and governed by laws, and the tree faker is not. 

 Above all, remember that in the profession of abori- 

 culture like that of medicine or law there is nothing of a 

 mysterious character that professional men would not 

 care to give to the world or write about for everyone's 

 use. The forestry departments of many of our greatest 

 universities have gone into the subject of ornamental and 

 shade tree care quite thoroughly, and are always ready 

 to give you their best advice , or, where necessary, recom- 

 mend the men that will examine your trees or do the 

 work. Ask the city forester or the tree warden, or a 

 professional arborist to give you his advice, and let him 

 employ or recommend a contractor to do the work. 



Surelv vour tree is worth at least as much trouble as 

 your (log or your cow, and if your animals are ill or 

 injured, you would not engage the services of a faker, if 

 good men are available, just because the former sent a 

 solicitor to see you, or because his ad confronted you in 

 everv magazine. Shun like poison the man with the 

 mvsterious mixture or the only methods. 



QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 



O. Will trees grow in our shopping districts? 



L. S., Morristozvu, N. J. 



.\. There is no reason why trees should not grow in 

 vour shopping district any less than in the shopping 

 districts of Washington, Paris and other cities. It is all 

 a matter of selecting the right kind of tree, planting it 

 properlw ami, later on, watering and keeping the crown 

 compact. 



Q. Will the asphalt pavement interfere with the growth 

 of our street trees? W\\\ it be serious enough to kill 

 them? L. S., Morristozvn, N. J. 



.V. .Asphalt i)a\enient, while to a certain extent inter- 

 fering with the luxuriant growth of trees, will not be 

 sufficient cause to prevent growth altogether. The streets 

 in most of the large cities are asphalteil and still there 

 are trees growing on them. 



Q. .\s a new subscrilier, I was examining yesterday 

 the January issue just received. I found a statement that 

 it was possible to kill weeds in a lake by scattering jiort- 

 Inid cement. The question is of vital importance to 

 me, as I am in general charge of a real estate develop- 

 meiu upon the brackish waters of the Severn River. 

 ^^'e have a beautiful bathing beach whose only drawback 

 is a growth of water-weed. I have tried cutting it out 

 with only limited success. I have been told that a 

 deposit of clean sand four or five inches in depth will be 

 effective, and I have visited places where the beach was 

 absolutely clear for several years after this treatment 

 has been applied. The treatment which you suggest, 

 however, is so much simpler and so much less expensive 

 that I am anxious to know more about it. Is it applicable 

 for brackish water-weed? Is it in anv wav injurious to 

 fish? How thickly must it be applied? 



W. H. M., Baltimore. Md. 



\. Relative to your water-weed question, while we 

 have had no personal experience with the method, I can 

 quote from a letter received in 1909 from Mr. J. C. Clyde 

 Power, of Los Angeles, who claims to have used it with 

 success. His letter and the series of questions put to him 

 appeared in a bulletin of the American .Association of 

 Park Superintendents, and I will send it to you. Our 

 personal experience has extended to destroying weeds by 

 passing through the water a mass of copper sulphate put 

 into a bag and suspended from a string which was held 

 from the back of a boat that passed around the lake, 

 but this method will kill the fish also. Sometimes it is 

 successful to cut out the weeds with scythes. The printed 

 matter may give you other ideas. 



