Twin city review. [volume] (Champaign, Ill.) 19??-1929, 1921-03-18
PROPER WAY
TO PLANT A
SHADE TREE
Tree Has Not Much Chance
To Live If Not Properly
Planted
(By C NJ. NJ

How shall we plant a tree? First,
see that 1t is trimmed as we described
before. Then dig hole larger than
Is needed, partially fiji il with soft,
fine earth, set the tree upon this bed
sift on fine earth and, as you do, pack
1t down firmly with the hands tho tool
will do as well as the hand), and see
that every ROOT Is firmly surrounded
with earth. Then wet the ground
well. II the tree IL rather large, or
has a lot of roots, wet the earth as
you pack IT, Then fasten some sup
port to at least three stakes, SO that
the wind, or playing children. won't
shake the tree loose from the earth
you have packed In. This is very
necessary. Add some mulch to keep
the roots damp.
All trees. young and old, adapt
themselves to their setting, and one
that has had one side to the north
won't do as well If that side is set
to the south. This is because the
south side is hotter, and the sun is
apt to heat the north side when set
to the south, so that the sap becomes
hot and ruins the growth of the tree
just there.
The writer once saw some men
planting a lot of young elms along
our streets. They were doing the work
so badly that he stopped and asked
them II they thought the trees would
live. OF course they said yes. The
trees we're dug and hacked from the
ground whence they were brought
Nothing had been done to make the
change easy for the young trees. The
writer told the men that the trees
would never live. He was told that
the planters knew their business and
he had better attend to his.
A year later not one in ten of those
trees were alive The planters had
shoveled dirt and sod upon those mu-
tilated roots, stamped the material
down, and imagined that tree could
save itself after that mistreatment,
You might as well saw a mans arm
off with bucksaw. tie an old rag on
the wound. and expect him To get
well
On another street. some years later.
a lot of young elms were being set
out. The men were placing the young
trees on fresh manure containing
put on the roots. Did those trees
live? or course not.
Some fifteen years ago there were
two magnificent elms, one in Cham
paign, one in Urbana.
The writer saw q man cutting off
some great limbs from the one in
Champaign and stopped to ask why
he was doing It, "Oh. thought
they needed little trimming" Those
limbs were six and eight inches in
diameter and no more needed to be
cut off than the mans head did. II
told him he had ruined his tree.
{ passed the place few days ago
The tree was gone. If that tree was
on my lawn no one could buy IL for
two hundred dollars.
The one in Urbana was the largest
elm In the whole of eastern Illinois
II was six feet through at the base,
two and half, ten feet up, and had
enormous limbs extending forty feet
in either direction. No five hundred
dollars could buy that tree II it was
on my lot, But someone cut off part
OF the limbs and burned them in his
stove. Later the whole tree was cut
down, and so persisted one Of the
oldest trees in Illinois, majestic
monarch OF the forest which many
people came for miles away to see.
No comment Is needed
We shall be setting out trees pretty |
soon. and ought to know how to do ii !
to the best advantage
First, no tree ought to be set in the |
parking except a hard maple or an
elm. You can't miss with hard ma. |
pie. but there are several varieties of
elm, some of them fit for our purpose
and some not. But the man who
comes around with trees to sell which
he has dug up somewhere doesn't
know one from the other
What is more, he pays no attention
to the manner of his digging. I He
simply digs, and cuts with an axe
(any way to get the tree OUT, put II
on his wagon. digs another in the
same rough way, and then offers to
sell you his goods.
Let's see about that A tree is
living thing, and has physiology of
its own, and, while it can stand al
good deal of abuse. It doesn't deserve
n -