65 stumps removed; 50 new trees to be planted
The Fulton Environment Committee has partnered with the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board to remove over 65 boulevard tree stumps in the neighborhood this spring. Park Board funding is not available to keep up with the stump removal of trees dying due to disease or damage. With the onset of the Emerald Ash Borer, we know we are going to lose many more neighborhood trees. The Committee wanted to contribute to cleaning up the boulevards and getting new trees planted in advance of the significant removal of ash trees.
The Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board Forestry Division will be planting 50 new boulevard trees in Fulton this spring. While most of the new trees will be maples, the MPRB Forestry crew will also plant Japanese tree lilac, disease-resistant elm, honey locust, hackberry, river birch and ginkgo.
All of these trees will need special care. The MPRB Forestry Division plants over 3,000 new trees yearly and has over 300,000 to care for throughout Minneapolis, so after the initial watering, the homeowner is asked to take over as caregiver. The newly-planted trees need an inch of rainfall each week. If rain does not come, the new trees need help. This is true for any tree less than five years old. The easiest way to water is to place a hose at the base of the tree, set at a slow trickle, for one hour, or to slowly pour eight five-gallon buckets of water around the roots of the tree.
If you want a new boulevard tree planted next spring (2011), you can call 612-370-4900 to request a tree. If you have a preference for a particular tree, you can request one from the varieties that are appropriate boulevard trees. (See list of trees above.) Park crews will determine if conditions allow for planting a tree. For valuable tree information on planting, caring for, and removal of trees in Minneapolis, visit www.minneapolisparks.org.
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