The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1912-04-01
BY J. F. THOMPSON.

/ L
will depend upon the width of the
street. The rule is to plant wide
| streets with trees that become tall,
and narrow streets, with trees that
never become large. The reason for
this rule is obvious. If large trees
are planted in narrow streets there
will come time when they will shade
the street too much and this will ne
cessitate cutting them back, which in
time will destroy them. No street
should be SO shaded that the sun can
| not shine in it, there should be a sky
| line. A street is more sanitary if the
sun can shine in upon it part of the
! day.
Suppose We take for example
street like North c. This street is
| forty feet wide from one property line
| to the other. 1t is well known rule
that in most residence streets from
| forty to sixty feet in width that three
fifths are given to the roadways and
tWo-fifths to the walk. This would
give North C eight feet ON each side
for the walk and parking strip; if four
feet are given to the walk, this will
and curb. No large tree will do well
in such narrow park strip if there
is cement walk on one side and a
curb and gutter on the other A large
tree could not get water enough to
supply such top as it should develop
and remain healthy tree, and even
IL it could the diameter of the trunk
near the ground and the large roots,
would break up the walks. Many of
our narrowest streets have been plant
ed with trees that are now so large
that it is almost impossible to make
any street improvements without in
Juring the trees. Streets like North
B and North c, South A, South B,
and South c should have small trees
A four foot walk is wide enough for
these streets and that will give
parking strip of four feet and trees
like the Norway maple will do very
well in such a parking. This is one of
the smallest trees, but good shade
tree.
Some cities have tried placing the
walk clear out to the curb and thus
placing the park strip on the inside of
the walk, continuous with the proper
ty. This is a good plan for narrow
streets providing the houses are set
back far enough from the street
From the standpoint of the trees this
is the best place for them, but we
remember that the tree is for the
street and not the street for the tree
This situation insures them safety on
one side and a supply of water from
the property side that can not be cut
off by street improvement. In mar
row streets, the trees thus placed
would give the street wider appear
ance, but if the houses are close to
the walk the objection to such placing
Oh trees is apparent.
But our north and south streets are
wider and have plenty of room for
almost any tree that would be desira-
BILE for streets. North Fourteenth
street is sixty-six feet wide. The road
way is thirty-eight feet, the walk is
six feet and the park strip is eight
feet. Suppose the trees are standing
in the center of the park; this will
make the distance from one tree line
to the other forty-siX feet. 1t is plain
that it will tage pretty large trees to
shade that wide space properly; but
if the trees were placed on the inside
of the walk, from tree line to tree line
would be fifty-eight feet and this |
would insure hot dusty and blank |
looking street. In some cities where
the streets are very wide, there is a |
parking strip in the middle and a road |
way on each side. This breaks the |
monotony of a blank space, with moth !
ing in it but brick or cement or maca-
dam
Some of our north and south streets |
are more than siXty-siX feet wide. |
South Sixteenth street is seventy-sev-
en- feet. When streets are wider than |
sixty feet the width of the roadway |
is determined by the possible amount |
of traffic it will have. There is no |
use in making the roadway wider than |
necessary and if it can be reduced to |
the Minimum it will be less expensive |
to keep up. The park strip may be |,
much wider and this will put the |
houses farther away from the dust and |
heat Of the roadway, and in these days |
of automobiles the street should be as
far away from the houses as possible |
People who live on streets with a
parking strip eight feet wide may Sc
select almost any tree that is fit at |
all for street purposes. I would like
to recommend tree for such streets,
Wis, thhe American Red Oak do
not know why this tree has been
sighted in American cities. There is
only one in Richmond streets that l
know of. People who have visited
European cities will tell you that no
native tree is priced as highly as our
Red Oak. The beauty of the English
parks in Autumn is in a very large de-
gree due to the American Red Oak
It grows faster than any other oak and
will thrive in a great variety of soils |
1t has large dark green tough leaves
which have practically no insect enc