moisture from the roots, and the leaves are subjected to winds laden 
with tar oil dust, and sooty smoke. It is for these reasons that this 
Plane is so universally planted. The leaves develop late, and are not 
subjected to frost or untoward early spring conditions. This late de- 
velopment makes it undesirable for planting in southern countries, 
on account of the early, hot spring. The bark of the tree is shed in 
large plates and does not harbor blights, fungi, or insects. The foliage 
is large, and is so strong that soot and gas affect the leaves but little. 
It takes the lead in Pittsburgh planting, and is satisfactory, even there. 
Trimmed, pollard, or pleached trees have always had a peculiar 
fascination for me. They recall the trimmed fruits, trained en 
espalier, on the stone waUs of the terraces of my childhood home, 
where luscious nectarines, apricots, peaches, pears and figs ripened as 
in Italy and southern France. Partly, the charm may be in making 
Nature conform to our will. The Plane tree lends itself above all 
other deciduous trees to trimming. It is planted in long avenues on 
the boulevards of Paris, trimmed high and shallow, and branched 
twenty feet from the ground, to avoid interfering with traffic on the 
one hand, and the air and hght of the buildings on the other. 
In Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, the pleached trees meet over- 
head before the Concert Pavilion, and the seats surrounding a foun- 
tain are under this canopy of green. To accomplish this, the trimmers 
work from high-wheeled scaffolds. 
The reasons for trimming city Planes are many. The pavements 
prevent sufficient water from reaching the roots, and a trimmed tree 
requires less moisture than one that develops naturally. The leaves 
are much larger, and the foliage is less straggling and gives a denser 
shade. The straight, rounded or oblique forms of the trimmed trees 
are in harmony with the architectural lines of surrounding buildings. 
The vistas are more impressive, and in many cases they would be lost 
if the trees were not trimmed. Where space is limited, pollard, 
mop-headed trees, or tall shafts are most suitable. In the neighbor- 
hood of the seashore or where exposed to high winds, the trimming is 
all-important to preserve a well-balanced symmetrical head and pre- 
vent the trees from looking windswept. 
Unfortunately, the Plane is not exempt from the blights and 
insects which modern commerce has brought to our shores from every 
country. During the summer I have found many leaves, the veins 
of which are fastened together by finely spun webs. Opening them, 
one finds a tiny green worm which later eats the leaves and may often 
be seen hanging from the tree by its web. This is the larva of a small 
moth belonging to the family Tortricidae. It may be controlled by 
