The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-10-20
CARE OF THE CITY'S TREES
IN INTERESTING REPORT SUBMIT
TED TO THE MAYO

to Inquire and Report on the Com
dition of the shade Trees of the city
Causes of the Decay and Destruction OF
Trees Remedies Recommended for
| Some of the Causes of Decay.
The special committee of citizens ap-
pointed to investigate and report on
what Is needed to maintain and inn
prove the condition of New Haven
shade trees submitted a report to
Mayor Driscoll last night After briefly
noting the present deplorable state of
our trees, the report discusses first the
causes of the injuries to them, then
what can be done to remove these
causes and repair the damage and last
| ly how this work can best be done. The
report was in substance as follows:
Old age is no doubt one cause of the
death of some trees. Many of those
bordering the old Green have been
SldHul1lR there lOI Ilu ScdlS' ILhSn VI
water and air in the soil, especially un-
der the trees in streets, is fruitful
cause of their premature decay and
DEATH Conditions of city life seem to
require that streets and walks should
be made as hard and impervious to
water and air as possible, but what
makes the best street makes the very
worst covering for the roots of trees.
Lack of plant food in the soil Our
soil is mostly light leachy sand, nat
urally infertile, from which for more
than century the trees have been talk
ing out the available plant food, a part
of it remaining in their wood and
part of it being carried away yearly
with the leaves. 1t is true that trees
can get food enough to live and make
some growth even from soils which are
agriculturally speaking, almost barren,
but the yearly application of some suit
able fertilizer to the soil about shade
trees is of the highest Importance, to
increase their growth and-what is
more vital-their thrift and power to
resist unfavorable conditions.
Mutilation of trees by horses and We
hicles. More than one-third of the
shade trees which line our streets have
been seriously damaged by the biting
and gnawing of horses which, contrary
to city ordinances. have been hitched to
them or left unhitched to bite and tear
them at their pleasure. The grocer's
horse is the most dangerous enemy Of
the shade trees.
To show the extent of this damage
the committee personally examined L.
143 trees on Orange, Wall, Ashmun,
Orchard. Chapel, Charles, Howe and
George streets and found 408 or SO per
cent. injured as just described.
The mutilations of unsl1illfuI trim
ming often tear away bark from the
sound tree or leave wounds uncovered
in such position as TO hold moisture
and start decay which spread into the
body of the tree and Injuries or ruins It,
Trees are to a much less extent also
mutilated by the chatting of electric feed
wires against their limbs, which in time
kills >he bark.
Poisoning by Illuminating gas has
killed many trees. The gas is extreme
ly poisonous to the roots as well as to
the leaves of trees and sometimes a
slight leak saturates the SOLAR and
does the damage before it is noticed at
the surface
The insect injuries to elns are from
three classes of insects, leaf eaters.
sap-sucking insects and borers.
The leaf eaters are represented by |
the elm leaf beetle and the canlzer
worm.
The life history, habits and appear
ahce Of these pests are fully described |
in the report.