F 



CHAPTER VIII. 



NUT TREES FOR ROADSIDE PLANTING 



OR roadside planting many of the best authorities urge 

 the use of nut trees, as combining the elements of shade 

 tree beauty with those of crop-producing utility. They 

 argue that for size, attractiveness and purely ornamental 

 effect some members of the nut group are among the most 

 desirable of American trees, and that they excel most 

 other trees of hardwood timber value in rapid growth, 

 length of life and resistance to insects and diseases. 



With this blend of the artistic and the practical, the 

 advocates of this type of planting are constantly gaining 

 new followers, and the growing of nut trees along the 

 highways is steadily becoming more frequent. 



Perhaps the first objection offered when this type is 

 suggested is the likelihood of raids on the nut crop by 

 people passing along the highway. The simplest reply is, 

 even in the event of complete loss of the crop, the property 

 owner is as well off as he would have been with non- 

 producing species. His highway has had the benefit of 

 the shade, the landscape has had the added beauty and 

 picturesqueness provided by magnificent trees, and his 

 farm has the increased value that comes from these 

 advantages. To carry the reply still farther, it may be 

 pointed out that complete loss is neither necessary nor 

 probable. In support of this the experience of nut and 

 fruit growers in various parts of the country may be cited. 

 In California, the Pacific Northwest, Michigan, and 

 many other sections we find orange groves, or almond and 

 walnut groves, apple or peach orchards, and extensive 

 vineyards coming close to the highways, and more than 

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