74 
TREES AS GOOD CITIZENS 
and planning as to species and location as does the more 
formal planting of city streets. 
The placing of the rows of trees on a street is depen¬ 
dent on the width of street and the character of its use. 
The spacing of the trees in the rows, however, is dependent 
primarily on the species to be used, as well as on the dis¬ 
tance between rows and the closeness with which buildings 
have approached or are likely to approach the trees. 
Large growing trees should be placed from 60 to 80 feet 
apart, although the practice in many places is to plant 
them as close together as 30 to 35 feet. Smaller trees 
should be planted more closely. When the distance 
between the rows of trees is greater than three-fourths of 
the proper distance between specimens, then the trees may 
properly be planted opposite one another; but when rows 
are closer together than that, then the trees had better 
be staggered, that is, the trees on one side of the street 
should be planted opposite the middle of the space be¬ 
tween the trees on the other side. On narrow residence 
streets, with liberal lawns in front of the houses, large 
trees may sometimes be used by increasing the distance 
between the trees in the row, so that the distance to the 
nearest tree on the other side of the street is as great as 
that to the nearest tree on the same side of the street 
would be, if the trees were planted a normal distance apart. 
To be successful, tree spacing must ignore lot lines 
and lot ownership, the trees being placed at the proper 
distances apart for the effect of the street as a whole, 
irrespective of whether or not a tree comes in front of 
every lot. This sometimes causes dissatisfaction, but it 
is essential to success. If the idea that, tree planting is a 
community function for community benefit, in the same 
way as street paving or sewers, can be impressed on the 
owners in contrast to the idea of individual ownership 
