This amenity, provided at no cost to you, can lower crime, reduce stress, reduce cooling bills, calm traffic, mitigate air pollution, help manage stormwater, increase atmospheric oxygen, improve your mental health--and is beautiful. But alas, it will not make julienne fries.
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This same amenity, provided at no cost to you, can lower crime, reduce stress, reduce cooling bills, calm traffic, mitigate air pollution, help manage stormwater, increase atmospheric oxygen, improve your mental health--and is beautiful. But alas, it will not make julienne fries.
This miraculous amenity is the street tree. You can apply to have one or more planted in front of your house for free by contacting the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society’s Tree Tenders program. The deadline to apply for fall planting is April 19th.
I have lived in Mt. Airy for 60 years. In that time period, we have lost at least 30% of our street trees to age, disease, and storms. I recall as a young child walking to and from Henry School along tree-lined streets. I remember watching the leaves emerge each spring, collecting and splaying winged maple seeds and sticking them to our noses like little horns; cherry blossom petals falling like snow squalls; streets where the branches of trees on both sides met high in the middle of the road forming giant green tunnels. Northwest Philadelphia is still relatively green and possesses some good street canopy. Any of us can experience the relief provided on a dog-day in August by striding from the oppressive scorch of a treeless thoroughfare to the cool shade of a tree-lined street. But our ability to do so is diminishing steadily as more and more trees are removed and not replaced.
Of several current programs intended to reverse this trend, one of the most effective is the semi-annual planting program coordinated by the city, PHS, and neighborhood Tree Tenders groups. Tree planting under this program must be initiated by the homeowner who must submit an application to obtain a street tree.
In other words, if you don’t apply to get a street tree under this program, you will not get one. Beyond filling out the application, there is virtually no cost to, nor work required of the homeowner to get a street tree.
If you know of a better deal to improve the value and quality of your home and neighborhood, please share it!
Don’t delay! For information visit pg-cloud.com/phs
David Dannenberg
