132 TEEES IN WINTER 



On city streets a slight projection of the curbing will often prevent 

 much injury. On country roads and in places where there is 

 no curbing, the injury may be prevented by the placing of a 

 large stone in a sloping fashion in front of the tree. 



Injuries From Wind and Ice — Much damage to trees is done by 

 severe wind storms. The wind^ of course, cannot be prevented, but 

 much trouble may be avoided by the proper selection of species. 

 Species differ greatly in their ability to withstand wind. Trees 

 that suffer most are those with brittle wood, like the Willows, 

 Poplars, Ashes, and Silver Maple. 



Evergreens are often injured by the accumulation of soft snow 

 on their branches. Valuable specimens should be closely watched 

 and relieved of their heavy burdens during snow storms. Sleet or 

 ice storms when followed by strong winds are very destructive to 

 trees. Serious injury to small-growing trees usually may be avoided 

 by knocking off the ice as it accumulates. Most danger occurs 

 when the temperature falls after the storm and the ice becomes 

 firmly set on the branches and twigs. It is necessary, therefore, 

 to shake the ice off before it sets. A long slender pole, padded 

 with burlap, may be used to remove the ice. As a rule, it is 

 only necessary to remove that near the ends of the branches where 

 the leverage is greatest. When broken branches are promptly 

 removed and the wounds properly treated, trees soon recover from 

 the effects of ice and wind storms. Poplars with excurrent stems 

 often lose all of their side branches, but new branches soon take 

 their place. 



Injuries From Improper Soil Conditions — The soil along city 

 streets is often very deficient in plant food and is often in a very 

 poor mechanical condition. The macadamized and j^aved streets 

 shut off the natural water supply and many trees are slowly 

 dying for the want of water. Since the elements of plant food 

 must be dissolved in water before the trees can make use of them, 

 much of the injury may be attributed to starvation. Poor soil 

 and the lack of moisture produce what is known as "stag-head," the 

 symptoms of which are a stunted and sickly appearance of the 

 tree, an imperceptible annual growth, sparsely scattered yellow 

 foliage, and dead branches at the top of the tree. The only 

 remedy for such a condition, of course, is to remove the cause of the 

 trouble. An open space of at least three feet in diameter must 



