“292 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
PLANTING AND CARE OF STREET AND LAWN TREES 
FOR SHADE AND ORNAMENT. 
A. W. HOBART, SUPT. LAKEWOOD CEMETERY, MINNEAPOLIS. 
I am thankful for the opportunity of addressing you on this subject, not 
that I consider myself authority on trees but for the reason that I am deeply 
interested in trees and tree planting and think that the subject should be 
kept before the public as much as possible, and if I am able in this short 
paper to make any suggestions that will be of benefit to the gentlemen of 
this association, its purpose will have been fulfilled. 
The first thing to consider is the kind of tree to plant, but as I see 
ahead of me on the program the assignment of this subject to one of your 
oldest members, and one of the ablest on the subject of trees, I will pass 
it, presuming that you will have already made your selection of variety from 
his recommendations. Having decided what to plant, great care must be 
used in the selection of your trees to get good, straight stems, free from 
blemish, with symmetrical tops and of uniform size. Be sure that they are 
healthy and free growers—which you can tell by the general appearance of 
the tree—and have plenty of fibrous roots. 
The next point to consider is the preparation of the tree for the change 
to its new location. If care is used in taking up the tree the roots will be 
in pretty good condition, but usually there are numbers of broken and 
bruised roots which must be cut away, well back into the sound wood, 
taking care in doing so not to sacrifice any of the fibrous roots which can 
be saved. 
The top must be severely thinned out or cut off entirely, so as not to tax 
the pruned roots too much. It is well in transplanting trees three inches or 
less in diameter to cut them back to poles from twelve to sixteen feet in 
length and let them form new tops entirely. I think this, as a rule, wilh 
result in the best shaped tree, especially for street planting. Watch the tree 
closely, and as it commences to throw out the new limbs trim out all un- 
desirable ones before they attain size enough to destroy the symmetry of the 
tree, and by so doing give the desirable limbs and branches the benefit of 
all the sap which the roots are sending up. 
Having prepared the tree, we will now proceed to prepare its future 
home. If the soil be sandy or gravelly, enough of it must be removed to 
make room for three or four cubic yards of good black loam in which to 
plant our tree; if the soil be already loam or clay, it will be necessary to 
remove only enough to make room for the roots of the tree and to pul- 
verize the soil to plant in. Before planting it is well to puddle the roots 
in liquid clay, as that insures against any air being left next the roots and 
gives good moisture to start with. 
In planting be careful to see that the tree stands an inch or two higher 
than it will eventually, so as to allow for the settling of the earth under 
and around it; then sift the fine dirt carefully down among the roots, draw- 
ing each successive layer of fibers carefully out straight, packing the dirt 
firmly under and around them as you proceed. When all the dirt is in, put 
on plenty of water to settle it at once. 
If permissable it is a good plan to mulch heavily for a space of three 
or four feet all around the tree, thus retaining the moisture by keeping the 
winds and sun from striking the ground adjacent. 
