Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1902-04-12
BEST STREET TREES
THE RELATIVE VALUG OF SPECIES
FOR BEAUTIFYlNG TOWNS.

Those That Grow Rapidly Are Not
Enduring-Oak Trees snid to he
Among the Best For streets Owing
to Their Freedom From Disease.
Where there is Il long. solid block of
houses newly erected cooling shade is
generally desired quickly because the
building operator looks only for immc-
diate results What may occur fifteen
or twenty years hence is of little con
Germ to him, says the Philadelphia
Ledger \ rapidly growing tree and
one easy to manage is what he re
qures. To this end the ordinary Caro-
lima poplar or the silver maple meets
the requirements exactly. But the
owner of Il property who expects to
use it as Il permanent home would not
be justified in selecting either of these
trees. because in Il few years they be
come too large, and the tree butcher,
with Il saw and AK, is likely to be call
ed in, and he is only the precursor of
the final decay Of the trunk and
branches within a short time
The genuine tree lover wants some
thing more satisfactory and enduring.
He is willing to have the shade come
more gradually providing he can have
beautiful tree at the same time.
This is where the difficulty of selection
comes in. for while the rapidly grow
ing species cited thrive in almost any
soil or situation, the rarcr trees are
apt to have likes and dislikcs in this
particular. Further, some which do
we'll have not been well tested and 9th
ers which will thrive have pcculiaritics
which dctract somewhat from their
value. For instance. the ginko, or
maldcnhair tree. has remarkable
power of nOurishing in spite of nOX-
iOus gases prevalent in cities and which
are so detrimental to Norway and su
gar naples, but it has most too much
of an erect habit for shade giving pur-
poses.
NurScrymen of experience declare
that in a combination of good fea-
tureS-that Is to say, comparatively
rapid growth, an umbrn gcous head and
freedom from disease and the attacks
of inSccts-the various species of oak
promise to be among the best selections
for city streets. Like the gingkO, the
oaks do not seem to suffer so much
from gases, and this is particularly
true of the pin oak.
OF other trees of comparatively rapid
growth the white ash is showing a SIM
liar adaptation. Unlike the Carolina
poplar and the silver maple, 1t grows
in beauty from year to year instead of
becoming a painful object to the eye.
The catalpa has been much praised of
late, but, aside from its winter distig-
urement on account of its dry bean
pods. worm has recently shown
particular fondncss for the leaves, and
thus 1t can hardly be considered fur
thcr.
With many, successful tree is the
horse chestnut. 1t is sometimes regard
ed as of slow growth, but this depends
in great measure on the character Of
the soil in which it is planted. In rich
earth, If of considerable depth to ac-
commOdate the taproot, the tree will
often make an annual growth of from
eighteen to twenty inches, which is not
lui u lttS IlhSSti luplt SlO"
ing. The horse chestnut never requires
beheading and has a natural tendency
to spread without becoming too tall.
The chief objection to the tree Is that
its leaves mature as early as the first
week in September; on the other hand,
it is among the first to welcome the
coming spring with its unfolding leaves.
There is another class sometimes
named as desirable, but which is apt to
become too large and unwieldy before
many years have passed-thc European
plane is one and the white and yellow
American elms are others. The first
named sometimes reaches such mani
moth proportions that one Of them Is
said to have sheltered large detach-
ment of Alexander the Greats army.
The elm Is susceptible of injury from
the elm leaf beetle. but where the Eng
lish sparrow flOurisheS there is no dan
ger to be apprehended from this source;
but lately destructive parasite which
destroys entire branches in single
night has fastened on the elm.