Presenting my report card for the city's trees Our poor trees. Now that the power's back on for most folks and the snow and ice have melted into memory, we're left to cope with a tree disaster of considerable proportions. City officials estimate it'll take months to clean up all the branches felled by the recent ice storm, but I imagine it will be years before our trees recover. Out here on the prairie, we take trees seriously. Cattle rely on shade to keep cool in the furnace of summer.
Trees make our city parks graceful and inviting.
Any Realtor will tell you that trees add value to a home. So losing trees to an ice storm is more than an inconvenience - it can be a significant financial loss. But even greater is the aesthetic loss of the charm which trees lend to a landscape. I consider myself a friend to trees. In my lifetime, I've spent a good many hours lounging in treehouses, sitting on shady riverbanks, or being warmed by wood fire.