The Evergreen Trees oe Colorado. 9 
be pinched back or cut off and the remaining one be tied erect to 
the stub of the leader. 
evergreens on the lawn. 
Among the evergreen trees of Colorado are to be found some 
of our most ornamental trees for the home grounds. If rightly 
placed and properly planted so as to secure a healthy growth 
they are capable of adding, not merely to the foliage effects of 
summer, but they also lend a pleasing touch of green to the winter 
landscape. 
They are best situated along the borders of the grounds, where 
they may form a background for shrubs and flowering plants. 
Specimen trees should not be freely used, as a rule, except on 
large grounds. They should be placed at a sufficient distance from 
other trees so that they can spread out naturally. If planted in 
sodded ground the sod should be removed and a circle of bare 
earth four or five feet across, kept well cultivated around each 
tree for several years. A great many evergreen trees, as well as 
other kinds, are needlessly lost every year by planting them in 
sod where they must compete with the grass. 
In the pruning of old trees one should hesitate to cut off the 
limbs close to the trunk if it is expected that new ones will start 
out as in many of the deciduous trees. The usual manner of prun¬ 
ing evergreens up from the ground for several feet is much to be 
deplored, especially in the case of specimen trees on the lawn. The 
beauty of most evergreens in such situations is dependent on their 
being allowed to develop a natural form with the lower branches 
extending clear to the ground. This practice of trimming off 
the lower branches is most often due to planting evergreens where 
they eventually shut off the light or the view. Thus it is advis¬ 
able to plan well in advance the position of each tree about the 
house and to take into account the effects of future growth. If 
trees of this class are planted on the south side and close to the 
dwelling there will eventually be an undesirable shading of the 
house in winter on the side where the sunshine at that season is 
most available. 
Then, too, the planting of evergreens before the front win¬ 
dows is sure in time to give rise to the necessity of trimming the 
trees up from the bottom, removing them entirely or else leaving 
them to darken the rooms and obstruct the view. Where privacy 
and seclusion are sought, however, evergreens are well suited to 
such purposes. Thus they may be used to screen or hide unsightly 
places or objects and are splendidly adapted for planting around 
outbuildings. 
