THE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY OF NEW YORK. 



preservation and planting of trees on the streets of the several boroughs. 

 Washington, Buffalo, St. Louis, Cleveland, Hartford, and Springfield, 

 Mass., have city foresters. Other cities have committees of the members 

 of the common councils to look after the street trees. 



The best solution by far of the problem of the planting and care of 

 shade trees is provided by a law of the state of New Jersey of 1893 and a 

 law of the state of Pennsylvania of 1907. These acts provide for the 

 establishment of commissions to take charge of the planting and care of 

 shade trees on the highways of municipalities. When, by resolution of 

 the city council, it be decided that the law shall become operative in a 

 city, then from that time on all matters pertaining to shade trees are placed 

 in the hands of the commission. All work is carried on in a systematic 

 way and trees are planted, pruned, sprayed and removed under the direc- 

 tion of the commissioners. The commissioners serve as an organization 

 without pay, and they employ a professional forester who has charge of 

 the executive work. Wherein these commissions differ from other similar 

 bodies is that they have the power of initiative in the matter of planting; 

 they decide that a certain tree is to be planted and determine on the 

 species of tree. After the work is done the commissioners meet and 

 certify a list to the receiver of taxes, on which are given the names of 

 the owners in front of whose properly trees were set out, and the cost 

 of the work. These assessments are entered on the annual tax bill and 

 are paid the same as any other legal lien. The cost of pruning, spraying, 

 removing dead trees and repairing old ones is provided for by a general 

 appropriation. 



Last winter he was called by a number of cities to help in the move- 

 ment to organize departments for the planting and care of shade trees. 

 As a result Chicago placed its trees under municipal control, and New 

 Orleans appointed a parking commission to have exclusive control of the 

 planting and care of street trees. 



A review of the work done in New Jersey will show that no such good 

 results could possibly have been accomplished by individual planting and 

 care of trees. The commission in East Orange began active work in the 

 spring of 1904. Up to and including 1908, 2,446 trees have been set out. 

 The species used were the Norway maple, sugar maple, red maple, Euro- 

 pean linden, American linden, pin oak, red oak, oriental plane, gingko, 

 ash and American elm. Only one species of tree was planted on a street. 

 These were set at uniform distances apart, averaging about forty feet, 

 and all trees were supplied with wire guards. The total assessments for 

 the 2,446 trees set out in the five years aggregated $8,494.40. The average 

 assessment amounted therefore to $3.47 per tree. This item included the 

 furnishing of the tree, the necessary topsoil, the planting, the staking and 

 placing a wire guard around it. Assuming that the average value at the 

 present time of the trees as they now stand is $10 per tree, which is a 

 very conservative estimate, the asset to the city is now $24,460, an increase 

 of about 200 per cent, above the original cost. There are about 70 miles 



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