I might say that occasionally the highway commissioner would run across an obstinate individual who would not plant trees in front of his place nor permit such trees to be planted as would conform to the other plantings. But the law passed at the last session of our legislature leaves it entirely in the control of the planting department of the highway department. The law reads that the owner of the adjacent property shall have the privilege of gathering the fruit or nuts or whatever may come from that tree. He has no better right, perhaps, than any other citizen of the State of Michigan, but he is there and can get the first ripe fruit or nuts which come from the tree. The President: Are there any further remarks upon this subject? If not, I have a paper prepared by Prof. A. K. Chittendon, Professor of Forestry in the Michigan Agricultural College, which I will ask the secretary to read.
ROADSIDE PLANTING
Prof. A. K. Chittendon
The improvement and beautification of our highways is one of the best investments that can be made. Particularly in the Middle West where we do not have the panorama of hills and mountains, much of the beauty of the road depends upon the roadside trees. They frame the long vistas of farmlands, woods, lakes and rivers and lend enchantment to the road. Under recent legislation Michigan has taken a leading place in the care and planting of roadside trees. Provision has been made by the Legislature for the planting of ornamental and food-producing trees along the highways and for their protection.
The highways offer an almost limitless field for ornamental planting and they also offer opportunities for raising certain food producing trees of which at present the nut trees are the principal species used. A time may come when we can safely plant fruit trees along the roadside but until provisions can be made for their systematic care and spraying, such trees would be liable to spread disease to nearby orchards.
Roadside trees increase the value of adjacent property. They attract birds and thus assist in keeping down insect pests. They may be used to prevent erosion on steep slopes. They increase the life of certain kinds of improved highways by protecting the roadbed from the direct heat of the sun. They serve as a source of food if nut-bearing or sugar-producing trees are used. They invite tourists to travel over the highways. They may serve as a windbreak to prevent the drifting of sand.
Roadside trees may, however, be too close together or by their shade injure crop production in adjacent fields. Some species of trees are particularly harmful if planted on the edge of a cultivated field. They send out their roots under the cultivated land and sap the moisture essential to plant growth. This can be avoided by using trees with deep or compact root systems.
The desirability of planting trees of any sort along the highways is sometimes questioned. There are places where it is urged that trees are not desirable. On stretches of road where the soil is naturally wet the heavy shade cast by certain species of trees is undoubtedly objectionable; but there are also trees whose shade is very light. Some trees make such a dense mass of foliage that they tend to prevent air currents and thus keep the moisture in the road from drying out. Along such stretches of road the method of planting may affect the matter of light and air, and species of trees can be chosen which will be practically unobjectionable. Most of the highway planting in the past has been a matter of chance and there have been few definite plans for any long stretch of roadway.
In selecting trees for planting the probable rate of growth and appearance of the tree at maturity should be borne in mind. What might seem entirely satisfactory in young trees may prove objectionable in the cost of mature ones. The size and shape of the tree at maturity should be considered as it affects the spacing of the trees. Also the amount of care which it will be possible to give the trees should influence the choice of species; for certain trees will produce good results with a small amount of attention while others require a great deal of care. The matter of interference with telephone and electric wires must also be considered. A species should be selected which is relatively free from the attacks of insects and fungi. It would be very difficult to find a tree which is entirely immune but there are some trees which are more resistant than others. The amount of shade cast by the tree is of a great deal of importance in connection with the moisture conditions; trees are often placed too close together which prevents their proper development. Where quick results are desired two species are often used, a fast growing one planted in between slower growing trees; the idea being to cut out the fast growing tree after the slower growing ones have reached good size. This is alright in theory but seldom works well in practice. The fast growing trees are seldom cut at the proper time and the result is often the stunting and injuring of the better and more durable trees. The fast growing trees usually die before many years. The result is seldom satisfactory.