Home Landscaping
(Page 4 of 10)
August/September 1999
By Mort Mather
Foresight
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There is one mistake I made that I wish I had realized 20 years earlier. We have a wonderful shade tree that we planted the first year we lived in this house. It was given to us by friends who told us it was a silver maple. The leaves were not quite maple shaped, nor was the bark what one would expect. A few years ago friends told us it was a silver poplar. I knew immediately that they were right. Poplars are fast-growing trees and we have greatly appreciated the shade of this one for over 20 years. Poplars are also short-lived trees and when they reach maturity they send out underground root-like stems, which send up new trees. These are sent 20 or more feet beyond the tree's drip line. Once the new growth is established, the old tree dies.
This has presented several problems, the least of which is that we will have to dispose of the tree when it dies and it is too close to the house for me to do it myself. Its progeny keep popping up in the garden and the rhizomes are tough and thick, creating extra work for us when we go to turn the soil in the spring. The worst problem is that we will lose our shade tree. If I had it to do over, I would still have planted the silver poplar because it has given us much pleasure and it grows fast. However, I would have planted a slower growing shade tree at the same time, so that it would have reached maturity and be shading the house by the time the poplar had to go.
Trees
I do have a replacement shade tree growing now-an elm. You may think me crazy, but this elm is supposed to be immune to Dutch elm disease. What if it isn't? Good question! The elm is planted farther away than the poplar. Genetically it is a taller tree, but it's got a ways to grow yet. As soon as the poplar dies and is removed, I will plant a maple in its place. If the elm dies, I'll still have the maple. Maybe the maple will run into some disease or other problem sometime in the future and the elm will survive. It is always wise to have some diversity.
If you are planting a windbreak, plant it much farther away from the area you want to be calmed than you would think. When you think of wind, think of the vacuum on the leeward side of your house. That is what causes the wind to make the house cold in winter. It is not the wind blasting up against the windward side but the vacuum created on the other side of the house that sucks air into the house. A windbreak should cause a vacuum between itself and the house. If it is too close, the wind whips over the windbreak and the house as one unit. The same is true for gardens that need a windbreak.
Besides shade and protection from the wind, trees can provide a direct source of income. Black walnut trees — highly prized by furniture and cabinet makers — have sold for as much as $90,000. And there are some new strains of black walnut that reach maturity in 35 years. But since there's lots of these trees growing now, they won't be bringing in that top-dollar again in the foreseeable future. Fruit trees will start producing fruit in less than five years and are also good for attracting bees to your property.
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