Evening star., 1932-08-27
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

The physical difficulties in getting on
and down to the ground-even the
smallest limb is no small one. People
commonly underestimate the weight OF
tree limbs. and especially of tree trunks.
Wood is heavy. That is why so many
home owners hire other men TO prune
their trees for them They should take
care that the men they get really know
what they are doing, and are not just
tree slaShers.
Aside from topping trees which en-
tangle wires or endanger property in
one way or other there would seem to
be no good reason for indulging in this
doubtful practice.
Trees had better be left alone. In
many instances, so great is their vital
ity, they will take care of themselves,
and the owner will have the pleasure
of watching one of the greatest re-
cuperations known TO Nature.
Trees are tough, as well as heavy
Even the shortest lived of them do
remarkably we'll when left entirely to
be Just as well If the home gardener
would begin the happy practice Of
Nature gardening with his trees.
Some gardeners do not know what
Nature gardening is. as distinguished
from human gardening. The latter is
the fussy sort of work with plants
known to everybody.
Nature gardening is the happy sort.
where Mother Nature, in command,
whether any one realizes it or not, Is
told consciously that it is her garden.
There you are, Nature" says the
gardener. GO to It'll" or words to that
effect.
Many a man who has sweated over
his species, worried himself half sick
about black spot on roses and elu.te-ed
Der the names of varieties will find
that this Nature gardening is great
stuff, as the young people say.
1t may give him whole new lease
on gardening life. Stranger things
have happened There is such thing
as too much gardening, just as there
is such thing as too much work, too
much golf, too much politics.
To all those-and they are many
to whom gardening has reached the
painful stage, the following advice may
be given, with malice to none and
charity for all:
Begin to let Nature do it more.
She actually does the work, any
way, why not let her shoulder the
worry, too?
Her shoulders are broad and capa-
cious.
Long before you arrived upon the
scene Nature grew her gardens, and es-
pecially her great trees.
There is just more than suspicion
that she will be at work long after you
are gone.
Theferore let her plants alone. as
much as you can, and especially keep
hands off her mightiest ones, these
trees of all sorts
Because a little topping of tiny
plants, mainly in the form of removing
first buds works we'll with them, is no
particular reason why 1t Is good for
this giant here.
The analogy Of such usage is wrong
because the plant is new plant, where
as this is an old tree.
The flower has youth to help it over
come the disbudding, but the tree suf-
fers tremendously, being on the wrong
side of life's ledger.
In protest 1t sends out the secondary
growth, as noted above, and for several
years it may seem to be doing well.
at the time of the merciless topping
and unless they have been right since.
the chances are decidedly that all will
not be well with your tree.
Let the trees be topped by Nature,
if they need it. With her high winds
she often does very thorough job.
Perhaps it may be objected that such
topping is thoroughly accidental, and
has so relation to the tree. But it has
If the tree is weak IN the top, the top
will come out That is, If the tree
needs topping. it will be topped. That
is the logic of Nature. which uses rot
and sickness and death as mysterious
instruments of a clean fate.