THE SHADE TREES OF DENVER. 
By W. Paddock and B. O. Longyear. 
A great many shade trees have been planted on the farms and 
in the towns in the agricultural sections of Colorado, but this does 
not necessarily mean that all who have planted trees did so because 
of their love of plant life. Perhaps a majority of the settlers form¬ 
erly lived where trees grow to perfection and their absence here 
emphasized the fact that a house destitute of trees does not meet 
all the requirements of a home. Then, too, it is almost necessary 
to have some relief from the glare of the intense sunshine and 
from the monotony of the plains. So the settlers have not been 
slow to make the best of what the country affords and but few 
country homes are seen in the older agricultural sections that are 
not surrounded by groves of cottonwood or boxelders. Neither 
is it uncommon to see country roads bordered with these trees; 
and in the older towns and cities, shade trees are as common as 
in many states that are more favored in this respect. Associated 
as they are with the early development of the state, the cottonwood 
and boxelder will not soon be supplanted. Their principal virtues, 
however, lie in the fact that they are easily transplanted and under 
favorable conditions make rapid growth. They also withstand 
the extremes of drouth and moisture if not too long continued 
and do not readily break down during a windstorm or under a 
load of snow and sleet. But, unfortunately, the quick growth 
for which these trees are mostly esteemed, leads naturally to early 
maturity. Trees that were planted by the first settlers twenty-five 
and thirty years ago, are now mature, and, judging from appear¬ 
ances, it will be only a few years before most of them must be re¬ 
moved. Full grown specimens of either species are rarely 
beautiful, and the wood has little value from a commercial stand¬ 
point. 
Still another cause has contributed in no small degree to the 
popularity of these trees. Large sums of money have been ex¬ 
pended in the effort to introduce trees from the East, especially 
chose kinds that were common about the old homes. But as the con¬ 
ditions that obtain in an arid climate were little understood, and 
a majority of the people who undertook to plant trees were not 
accustomed to the work, most of these efforts resulted in failure, 
since but few trees will stand abuse and neglect so well as the cotton- 
