In some areas the danger of fall- 

 ing trees will be accelerated pres- 

 ently, since the trees have reached 

 maturity, and being somewhat less 

 than human they will fall apart in 

 old age rather than fade away in 

 the absence of braces, crutches, and 

 fillings. Surveys would determine 

 hazardous and diseased trees that 

 require timely pruning or removal, 

 and at the same time offer oppor- 

 tunity for appropriate tree planting. 



This relatively simple suggestion 

 is not so simple to execute in the 

 tradition of New England towns. 

 In fact, the complications can be- 

 come legion in number when one 

 treads ever so softly near the tree of 

 romantic or sentimental attraction, 

 real or imagined. 



For the immediate present, the 

 survey work to discover and remedy 

 tree defects before they become 

 tree tragedies offers the best hope 

 for storm-proofing lines. 



A Job For Research 



For the future, which is sure to be 

 here before most people are ready 

 for it, the planting of street trees 

 should be subjected to the same re- 

 search treatment already accorded 

 the wires. No one could deny that 

 the outside plant of utilities has 



undergone continual progressive de- 

 velopment. Yet, the setting onto 

 which this plant has been superim- 

 posed has remained fundamentally 

 the same. In criticgdly evaluating 

 the place of street trees in the 

 future, one should not overlook all 

 features of the site. In addition to 

 wires and poles, highway construc- 

 tion, curbing, snow plows, trucks, 

 pleasure cars, underground services, 

 and tree diseases complicate the 

 satisfactory maintenance of trees. 

 The problem is a challenging one, 

 the more so because it is often dis- 

 posed of so readily, if innocently 

 and expensively. 



Only completely objective studies 

 can do justice to the problem. 

 Otherwise, the elimination of street 

 trees may be threatened. Some 

 alternatives are careful selection of 

 suitable trees, planting trees on 

 adjacent private property, and ju- 

 dicious tree maintenance. Opera- 

 tion of the many experiments now 

 in progress throughout the Com- 

 monwealth in this relatively new 

 field necessarily leaves one at times 

 in the quandary of the artist who 

 wished he knew as much about any- 

 thing as his critics knew about 

 everything. 



This broken limb, hanging 

 like the sword of Damocles, 

 is another striking example 

 of damage caused by weak- 

 ened trees and storms. 



