THE PLANTING OF STREETS AND WAYSIDES. 



BY JOHN A. PETTIGREW, BOSTON. 



Delivered before the Society, March 2, 1907. 



The planting of street trees should be classed as one of the most 

 important of civic duties. It matters little how imposing the 

 architecture of a city is, unless its lines are softened by the foliage 

 of trees, it seems devoid of artistic beauty, warmth, and hospital- 

 ity. On the contrary, let a street be ever so unpretentious as to 

 its architectural features, yet, if its dwellings are banked in foliage, 

 an air of homelike peace and contentment seems to pervade. 



Apart from the artistic beauty that trees impart to the streets 

 of our cities, from a financial point of view the planting of street 

 trees has much merit. Barren, shadeless streets are not attractive 

 to visitors or to home-seekers. As a business proposition, un- 

 plantcd streets may fairly be classed with dirty streets, unsanitary 

 conditions, or with any other form of slovenly civic housekeeping. 



I am advocating nothing new when I claim that the systematic 

 planting of trees in city streets adds greatly to the value of con- 

 tiguous property. Anyone who has given the subject thought or 

 has had experience in property values is aware of the truth of 

 this statement. It is as patent as the fact that the construction of 

 parks has had an enormous influence financially on adjacent 

 property. As illustrating this, I quote from the report of a com- 

 mittee of the New York Park Association, published in 1882, 

 which shows the immense pecuniary returns to the City of New 

 York in twenty-five years from the construction of Central Park. 

 The total amount spent, to the date of the report, 1882, for the 

 purchase of land, for construction, maintenance, and interest 

 amounted to .143,794,150. Quoting from the report: "Large as 

 this amount appears, and undoubtedly is, it is comparatively 

 insignificant in view of the enormous benefit which resulted finan- 



