30 AGRICULTURAL AND MECHANICAL COLLEGE OF TEXAS. 



eries, the selection of suitable species for planting and the proper meth- 

 ods of setting out, priming, spraying or removing trees within the city. 

 The scope of the work is both technical and administrative since it deals 

 with the management of the trees directly and also enforces city regu- 

 lations necessary to secure the most effective results. 



In many sections of the country, city forestry work is well estab- 

 lished. New York, Washington, Baltimore, Jersey City, Newark, Koch- 

 ester, Chicago, Minneapolis, St. Louis, Los Angeles and many other 

 sities, both large and small, have inaugurated departments which carry 

 out the local policy of handling street and park trees. Dallas has so 

 far been the only city in our State to create the office of city forester, 

 but the results already attained should encourage other of our larger 

 cities to follow suit. Virginia, Minnesota, a small sawmill town, has 

 only eleven miles of streets, but under the care and direction of the 

 city forestry department has parked and transformed them into boule- 

 vards, in addition to establishing a forty-acre city park. In our own 

 State the local tree club of Temple, by means of a recently completed 

 street tree census, has ascertained that 30,496 trees, embracing forty- 

 nine distinct species, are growing within the corporate limits. Clubs and 

 organizations of this kind may result in street tree commissions or city 

 forestry departments vested with proper authority in the handling of 

 their trees. 



A definite method of procedure should be followed in establishing 

 city forestry work if the best results are to be secured. In large cities 

 there should be one governing body, usually the park board, highway 

 department or a specially organized street tree commission, which for- 

 mulates the city's policy in handling the trees. This body and its ap- 

 pointees should be entirely free from city politics, as results are not 

 secured at once and changes in management are not desirable. One 

 city employe, appointed by and answerable to this body, should be placed 

 in charge of. the actual work and given the authority necessary to carry 

 it on. He should be authorized, subject to the approval of the govern- 

 ing body, to employ the necessary assistants, to devise and improve city 

 regulations incident to the proper conduct of the work and to regulate 

 and control all matters pertaining to the care and propagation of the 

 city's trees. He should endeavor to secure an accurate record of the 

 location, condition," species and number of the city trees and should 

 prepare an annual report setting forth the past year's activities with 

 the results and a proposed plan for the ensuing year. In addition, he 

 should be ready at all times to furnish advice as to insect control and 

 private planting and should prepare timely press notices containing 

 information which his public should know. 



The head of the city forestry department is variously styled "City 

 Forester," "Tree Warden," "City Arboriculturist" or "Superintendent of 

 Trees," but under any title his duties are practically as outlined above. 

 Because of the many different phases of the work a special training is 

 required and forestry schools are educating men to fill this demand. 

 An efficient city forester should be an executive. His technical quali- 

 fications should embrace a knowledge of botany, insects and fungus 



