For September, 1921 



695 



The Washington Elm 



THE delegates to the convention of the S. A. I', and 

 O. H. who visited the capitol last week were very 

 much impressed with the work lieing done for the 

 preservation of the many historic trees in the park which 

 lies between the building where the lawmakers hold forth 

 and the Congressional Library. The chief interest was 

 in the Washington Elm. which gets its name from the 

 story which is wound around it in a romantic way. Un- 

 like the famous cherry^ tree episode, this one is vouched 

 for. so the capitol guides say. 



When the cajiitol was being constructed, it was the 

 practice of Mr. Washington to go to the place which is 

 now this beautiful park to watch the progress of the 

 work. He selected this elm because of the shade it af- 

 forded and beneath its boughs he would sit and eat his 

 lunch. This was in the 

 davs which preceded the 

 advent of the jitney bus, 

 and if his horse cast his 

 shoe or something else 

 happened, the President 

 was likely to be away from 

 home all day — hence the 

 lunch and the elm tree epi- 

 sode. 



The work of preserving 

 this and the other well- 

 known trees is being done 

 by the Davey Tree Expert 

 Co. of Kent, O., under the 

 supervision of Martin L. 

 Davey and his assistant, H, 

 K. Perry. The former re- 

 cently completed a term in 

 Congress, w here he be- 

 came well known because 

 of his knowledge of trees, 

 and when it became appar- 

 ent that some of the beau- 

 ties of the capitol grounds 

 were being menaced by de- 

 cay, he was called into con- 

 sultation by the capitol 

 authorities. 



.\ survey of the situation 

 was made, and it was de- 

 cided that the main fea- 

 ture trees should be given 

 innnediate attention, and 

 that later efforts should be 

 made to secure a proper 

 appropriation to permit all 

 of the trees needing attcntinn to be treated carefully. 



"Taking it all in all." said Mr. Davey after the survey 

 had been made, "these world-famous trees are in pretty 

 good shajx; physicall}', but structurally many of them are 

 weak through decay, splitting crotches and in some in- 

 stances from lack of nourishment due tf) the long stand- 

 ing of the trees. This latter difficulty will be met by the 

 use of fertilizer introduced through crowbar holes as a 

 temporary proposition because it would make the place 

 unsightly now to jjlow up the ground and ])roperly fer- 

 tilize it." 



The tree dentists, as they have come to be known, 

 started on the Washington Elm. This stands loftily by 

 itself near the .'senate wing of the capitol. Their activi- 

 ties were hampered a great deal by the tourists who en- 



The IVashington Elm and other fine trees on the grounds of the 

 Capitol ill IVashington are being preserved by the use of cement 

 and other devices tinder a recent appropriation by Congress. 

 [■'orincr Congressman Martin L. Davey of Ohio, a noted tree 

 surgeon, is shown here supervising the work. 



gaged them in conversation in an effort to get the history 

 of the tree and some knowledge of what the men were 

 doing. These tourists came from all p;irts of the country 

 and from many foreign lands. The S. A. F. delegates, 

 having some knowledge of "treeology,'' appreciated what 

 the tree dentists were striving to do, and their presence 

 was welcomed. 



This tree stands about 75 feet high. It was first 

 treated by the Davey Tree Expert Co. about eleven years 

 ago; since that time it has developed only three local 

 cavities located midway u]) the tree on the main limbs. 

 It was necessary to brace some of the limbs by means of 

 three-eighths inch galvanize double strand cables, seven 

 being used for this purpose. 



A sugar maple, planted by the famous Congressman 



from Missouri, the late 

 Champ Clark, was found to 

 be rather weak, but it will 

 be brought around all right, 

 according to Mr. Davey, 

 with proper treatment in 

 the way of nourishment 

 and watering. 



A tree planted by Miss 

 Jeanette Rankin, the first 

 woman to be elected as a 

 member of the House of 

 Representatives, is a red- 

 wood, which seems to be 

 making good headway in 

 its new home. 



The workers are treating 

 an .American elm, almost 

 directly in front of the cen- 

 ter of the capitol which is 

 estimated to be about 

 eighty years old. They 

 have braced one limb by 

 means of a cable and filled 

 three small cavities. The 

 vitalit}" of this tree is re- 

 ported as good. 



.\n English elm was 

 found to have thirteen cavi- 

 ties of medium size. This 

 tree is about one hundred 

 years old and its weak 

 spots required strengthen- 

 ing with eight of the gal- 

 vanized cables. It towers 

 alxtut eighty feet in height 

 and is about four feet 

 tiirough the trunk. It is one of the largest in the grounds. 

 .Another elm has a cavity twenty feet in length. This 

 huge stretch of filling material is laid oft' in blocks, giving 

 the appearance of a human backbone, so made to permit 

 the tree to bend naturally when swayed by the wind. 

 A\'ithout such a system a heavy wind would break the 

 tree. Such work as this was of great iiUerest to the florist 

 delegates: to many it was something entirely new and it 

 represents one of the fine ])ieces of tree surgery work. Tt 

 indicates study and great care in the etifov'. • to further 

 preserve these wonderful s]x;cimens. 



.\n American white ash having a cavity six feet long 

 and from two and one-half to three feet wide, has to be 

 cared for. This tree is estimated to be one hundred years 

 (Confhiued on pa,(^c 70.1) 



