The Waterbury Democrat., 1932-07-16
Michigan Follows Natures Scheme In Identifying Its Highways

By NEA Service
 LAn1inG. Hleh.-Miohigan roads are "koing back Co nature" and, consequently, that state now poe sesses come of the most beautiful highways in the country.
 The reason for this 0 that enGi- neers, kOreBtefg and landscapofs are cooperating in road construc- ton in an. endeavor to make over ugly gasies and pile sof earth left In Mother Natures ensemble after construction crews have finished their jobs.
 In Michigaii's road construction plan, the highway engineer stands shoulder-to -sh0uider with the land seape architect. After the former is finished, the latter comes along and replants trees, bushes, shubs and flowers, not in straight rows like city tree planting. but in as natural . grouping as possible.
 Work From Photographs In some cases the landscape crew goes ahead of the eonstruc- ton gangs, photckraphink and sketching the beauty spots. After this is done 1t ib comparatively simple. to fkplAnt the mutilated area almost as natural as it was before.
 According to Phelps ;vogeisang, state forester, Michigan is divided into 10 fesidencies, and each one has a resident forester or resident lahdscaper.I These men work di- rectly under supervision of the state forester at Lansing.
 Each resident forester has from seven to IA counties under hls charge and in each county he has developed at least one crew of eight or 10 men who devote their entire time to roadside develops ment work. The duties of these crews consist of general fnAinteh- ance of trees, shrubs, planting, de- velopment of roadside springs, maintenance of roadside parks, and other work.
 "Practicaiiy all the roadside work ie done through our Tnainten- arice organization to which these crews belong" vokelsane informs "Our work is financed both through maintenance and construc- ton.
 Each year we budget on our
 maintenance projects certain amounts to be placed ofA each sec ton of road to cover the care of trees. shrubs, parks and % forth.
 Route Studied Beforehand
 whenever a new road Is to be built the resident forester inspects the new location and prepares eSti- mates on the cokt of all roadside work to be done on that project. Such estimates include preserva. tion of trees, the moving of desir- able trees so that they will not be destroyed, during construction, the complete planting of all barren areas, development of roadside springs, sodding and planting of barren slopes, and grading work in connection with any of these items.
 ''1n addition to this work, our resident foresters have charge and supervise the placing of public util- ity lines within highway limits, as well as the removal of roadside ad- vertising signs."
 Before any road is built, the chief engineer of plans and design, who is also landscape architect, works with the chief forester on location and general design so as to insure that state highways will be built with beauty as an important fac- tor.
 State Buys Forest Land
 To insure highway beauty through timbered areas in the state, the state administrative board annually appropriates 95e,000 for the purchase Of 400-foot right of ways. In the last three years more than 2,165 acres of timber along highways have been pur- chased from this fund.
 It's surprising how much can be done toward road Identification with a comparatively small amount of money.
 According to vogelsang, the de- partment plans to spend about $16s,s28 in construction planting and maintenance planting. This amount of money will plant 25,240 trees, 57,650 shrubs. 363.700 ever greens, and will also finance triln- ming, transplanting, yelling and grading.