Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-03-31
PLANT TREES; LISA DUTY
TO FUTURE GENERATIONS
No Community Can Afford to
Neglect Restoring Natures
Depletions.
From the Baltimore sun.

From the Balttmore sun
A crutch would have seemed more
natural than mattock, for the man was
very old and bent and wrinklcd, and his
hands trembled even when he leaned on
the mattock handle to speak to the young
man in the road Yet he was digging
Justify at deep hole, preparing TO plant
a young oak.
The Young man pulled up his horse at
the yard gate. "Grandshire Green,
he said. ''it would be natural for me TO
plant trees because might live to enjoy
their shade and their beauty, but you
why don't you go enjoy yourself and leave
that sort of hard work to us younger
fellows"
well. nv boy" replied the old man,
81 found trees here when | came INTO the
world more than so years ago, and when
90 out of the world want to leave some
trees here for the people who are TO ioiio"
me -
ubv sbo,,Id not every man feel the same
WAY about it? George Peabody SAID,
ssEducation is a debut due from the present
10 future generations" Trees are Just
as much So The great trees that one
stands reverentlv in awe Of are not at
tanned in a lifetime. They are creatures
of the centuries. The grandchildren os our
grandchildren can know nothing OF the
sublimitv and the charm of the KIND that
grow in the open unless We plant them;
That is one OF the things that the United
States Department OF Agriculture mas
in mind when it says that no community
can afford to neglect Arbor i'aS' buc
it has a great many other things IN fnind'
too. Nothing helps more to heauthy
a city or town than trees, and ie" thihgs
40 educate the people III public spirit
hn
The celebration of Arbor Day by the
planting of trees, say the department
specialists, is an assumption OF an all-the-
vear-round responsibility There is quite
"a much need for the care OF trees ana
shrubs as for actual planting.
In the past, the planting of trees on
Arhor Dav has usually been In school
grounds and parks Recently, 1t has
been the means of arousIng interest III
roadside paintings. both IN city and
country.
Some objection has been made TO trees
along the roadside on the ground that they
hinder driving out after wet weather
This holds good If the road IS poorly punt
but trees are actually an and IN keeping
well-built road dry, if they are not planted
too close. The roots, by constantly
taking in water. assist in drainage, and the
tops. bv breaking the force Of driving
rains. prevent washes in the roadway
The most important use of trees by the
roadside, however, Is the prevention OF
dust Dust Is the ccmentIng material
IN macadam roads, and il It Is loosened
and blown AWAY the breaking up OF the
road is fastened
What the trees do for the roads they do
also for the forestcd hillsides Wherever
there are no forests on the hills and noun
tains the rain and melted snow r'lshes OIL
in torrent, digging out great gulhes and
carving away the fertile soil Where
there is forest the trees protect the Soil
from the besting Of the ram; the roots
lead the water deep into the ground, TO
he stored up there and gradually fed out
hy springs all the year round. the leaf
litter ahsorbs and holds the water like a
sponge; the trunks and roots prevent the
rapid r,Inoff of the water and bind the
soil together. The forest IS OF tremendous
benefit in preventing both floods and
drought; il is IN reality natural storer
Of water. 1t is highly desirable, often I'M
p,erative, therefore, that the watersheds
of navigahle streams and those upon which
towns, cities. irrigation projects and
water-pou,r plants depend for their
supply should be forested,
The greatest value of Arhor Day lies
in its effect upon people attitude toward
the trees that are already growing; for
manifestly there are thousands of trees
of natural origin to every one planted
bv man. The average citizen IS only now
beginning to realize the necessity for
taking care of these trees. having never
before considered that they needed
any care.
Here is the Department of Agriculture
method of planting trees Cut of the
ends of all broken or mutilated roots and
remove all side branches
Dig holes at least feet in diameter and
2feet deep. If the soil IS poor they should
be feet in diameter. Make the sides /
perpendicular and the bottom fiat Break
up the soil in the bottom to the depth Of
the spade blade. Place on the bottom II
or Is inches OF good top soil. placing at
the TOP the fine soil free from sods or other
decomposing matter. On the top Of this
layer spread the roots of the tree as evenly +
as possible and cover them with , or 3
inches of fine top soil Tramp the soil
down firmly with the feet. water thorough
", and after the water soaks IN fill the
hole with good earth. leaving the surface
loose and little higher than the surface
OF the surrounding soil.
When planted the trees should stand
? or inches deeper than they stood in
the nursery. They should be planted
far enough apart so that at maturity they
will not be crowded.