Plant Pay Trees on Highway
Something That Will Not Only Be Beautiful But Also Profitable
"County Forester Grant, in charge of tree planting for Orange County, sprung a surprise at the recent convention of the Southern California Arborcultural Association, in Riverside, when he read a paper in which he set forth that, by investing $400 in young nursery stock some time ago, it was going to be possible for him and his associates to put out 150 miles of highway shade trees, in a period of three years, at the ridiculously low cost of four cents per tree," says Howard C. Kegley. He declared that, in the city and county tree warden work, the first item of economy to consider is the matter of growing the trees in city or county nurseries and cutting out the heavy overhead expense, to a great extent, in that way. Mr. Grant's ideas are well worth adopting in other counties than Orange.
He is a man of wide experience in forestry work, having seen forestry service in India, Africa and Australia, as a forester of the English provinces, and in the forest reserve of this country as an humble servant of Uncle Sam's bureau of forestry.
He declared that America is fourth in the world in the importance of her forestry work, India leading all countries, Germany following and England being next in importance.
Mouth of the Russian River
It has only been in recent years—perhaps the past ten years at the outside—that this, country has been paying much attention to systematic shade tree planting along streets and highways, so there are many little ideas which have not yet been worked out, and doubtless many suggestions will be adopted by city and county foresters, from outside sources, during the next few years.
A suggestion which it seems that it might be well for the tree wardens of Southern California to adopt as quickly as possible is that of beautifying our streets and highways with trees which are at once ornamental and possessed of a considerable economic value.
A cow that gives four gallons of milk a day is just as ornamental and a great deal more valuable to the community in general than the cow that gives no milk, so why feed an unproductive cow? By the same token, why surround ourselves with trees which do not pay their way?
Long before the illustrious Napoleon met his Waterloo, it was proposed in France that fruit and nut trees, representing something beside expensive luxury, be planted along the highways of France. That was something like 400 years ago. Think how long ago that was, and we have not come to it yet; still we jolly ourselves along in the belief that we are the most progressive people on earth, and we are, in a way.
When the matter of planting fruit and nut trees along the highways in France was taken up seriously, the cry was that the plan would fail, because the people would be apt to steal the fruit of the trees. Whereat the ruling cardinal said:
"To whom should the crops belong but to the people, for the people own the trees."
The idea was taken up forthwith, and it was greatly elaborated during the reign of Napoleon. To-day and for many years, the annual production of fruits and nuts by the trees along the highways in France is of great importance in the matter of paying the expenses of general highway upkeep. The trees have always been a great deal more than self-supporting since they came into bearing.
Even in the Philippines this idea is being carried out, and yet we have not taken it up seriously in this country. The United States department of commerce has for years been planting profitable fruit and nut trees along the newly made highways of the Philippine Island interior.
While ahead of many other States in this work of systematically planting shade trees along her highways, this State has been going ahead decorating her roadsides and streetsides with trees that give no milk. What's that? Trees don't give milk? They don't, huh? How about the cocoanut tree? Well, anyhow, it is time for us to get on the right track. California of all sections of the country, and Southern California in particular, has no excuse for not planting profitable trees along her streets and roads.
Private individuals have for years been ornamenting their parkings and their roadsides with walnuts, almonds, apricots, and many other revenue producing trees, and where in Southern California can you find prettier lanes through which to drive for considerable distances than the walnut tree shaded thoroughfares in and around Santa Ana, Orange, Whittier
