6 
NORTH SHORE BREEZE 
“TREES ARE NOBLEST 
PRODUCTS OF NATURE,” 
Says Supt. of Parks Pettigrew of Boston in 
Address at Manchester Last Night. 
‘Street and Wayside Planting ”’ was 
the subjet of a decidedly interesting 
and instructive address by. John A. 
Pettigrew, superintendent of parks of 
the city of Boston, at the Manchester 
Town hall] last evening. The address 
was given under the auspices of the 
North Shore Horticultural society. 
The speaker is one of the most 
prominent horticulturists in the coun- 
try, and was, before coming to Boston, 
superintendent of the park systems of 
Chicago, Milwaukee and Brooklyn. 
His remarks were in part as follows: 
« Recognition of the value of trees 
as an adornment to. streets in this 
country dates from an early date. 
As early as 1655 interest was man- 
ifested in the preservation of trees. 
In one respect we have not progressed 
since that day. We have with us to- 
day, as the early founders of Boston 
had, those who ‘cut, hack, or other- 
wise spoyle trees.’ We have, also, in 
goodly number, the small boy, with 
his ever-ready pocket-knife, to whom 
the smooth stem of a tree is a sore 
temptation —a temptation as irresti- 
ble as was the cherry tree to George 
Washington in his boyhood days. 
“Then, too, the trees on the curb 
of every street bear ghastly evidence 
of the gnawing of generations of» un- 
hitched horses; indeed, it is not an 
uncommon thing to find hitching rings 
driven into fine, old trees. 
“‘When one sees these battle-scarred 
veterans of the streets enduring ill- 
use, year after year, and sometimes 
decade after decade, yet still putting 
forth leaves in the spring ina struggle 
for existence, one cannot but realize 
that Nature has endowed many of our 
tress with remarkable endurance and 
great adaptability for planting in our 
streets; 
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5. ¢ 
“Trees may be ranked 
among the noblest products 
of nature. Carelessness 
and the fierce fight for gain 
are among the causes which 
despoil our trees. In addi- 
tion to shading our streets 
and waysides, trees lend a 
softening effect to the in- 
harmonious appearance of 
streets and thus appeal to 
the artistic sense. 
(Itiisabasber sevretted 
that in laying out new 
streets the tendency of the 
day is toward the narrow- 
ing of the sidewalks and 
the omission of any pro- 
vision for a tree-planting 
space. That the early set- 
tlers of New England transmitted 
their love for trees to subsequent gen- 
erations, the magnificent elms to be 
found in our New England towns give 
evidence. The New England elms 
are noted far and wide; the charm 
they add to the wayside is beyond 
price. Is is not important, then, that 
every effort should be made to encour- 
age the growth of and to protect all 
wayside trees ? ' 
“Laws have been enacted in Mas- 
sachusetts making it obligatory on the 
part of towns to elect tree wardens, 
who shall have the care and control of 
all public trees. The idea is sound 
and the influence on civic beauty will 
be very powerful. Let it be a popular 
service to see that competent wardens 
are elected and that their duties are 
faithfully performed. Laws and _ or- 
dinances are of little avail unless sup- 
ported by the hearty co-operation of 
the public.” 
The speaker then enumerated some 
of the best trees for street planting, 
saying that first of all comes the 
American elm. Others named_ in- 
cluded the European elm, the horse 
chestnut, the soft maple, American 
ash, the buttonwood or sycamore, the 
maiden-hair tree, the hard or sugar 
THE WILLOW ROAD, MAGNOLIA, 
STREET SCENE,, MANCHESTER. . 
maple, the Norway maple, the syca- 
more maple, the American beech, the 
silver poplar, the American linden, 
the European linden, the tree of 
. Heaven, the white willow, the tulip 
tree, the red oak and the pin oak. He 
described each of these trees, and 
gave the best and surest method of 
handling them. 
‘The planting of street trees,” he 
said, continuing, “ requires as much 
care as does their selection. It is not 
enough to merely dig a hole and 
crowd the roots into it. Street trees, 
generally, are planted too closely to- 
gether, and they grow, overcrowding 
and injuring each other, destroying 
not only their own individual beauty, 
but also the symmetrical arrangement 
which an avenue of trees should have. 
‘To sanitary and hygienic reasons 
Streets ought not to be too much 
shaded. Sixty-five feet apart is the 
minimum distance, I think, at which 
street trees should be planted. For 
large, growing trees, as the elm or soft 
maple, 75 feet or 100 feet apart would 
be none too much space. 
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street trees. An irregular planting, 
conforming, in general, to the sur- 
rounding scenery, would: be in 
better harmony. 
«An important matter, also, 
in the care of trees is the pruning 
of all broken or diseased linbs or 
branches, by cutting the limbs 
tree. Cut off smooth and paint 
over the wound with coal tar. 
‘Tf planting is worth doing at 
all it is worth doing well, for on 
this depends the well-being of 
the tree. It is safé to: say, if 
Mr. Pettigrew’s only reference 
to the insect pest was: ‘The 
‘Wayside or highway trees need a 
not be set with the same precision as 
off closely at the bole of the 
you have $20 to spend on plant- 
ing a tree, let $19.50 of the 
amount be spent on the prepara- 
tion of the ground to receive it.” 
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