RSS FeedRIP: Tree & Treebox
Thanks go out to Mark for informing us that Penn Quarter has lost a tree. No big deal, right? We’ve lost trees before, but they have always been replaced (including the one in front of Potbelly).
Not this time. Mark also sent a pic of the treebox as it was being bricked over. Buried.
For a bit of perspective, the treebox in question housed a tree that looked a little worse for wear. But, more intriguing, the tree also interrupted certain views of the newly installed sculpture outside of the Reynold’s Center. Everyone enjoys a good conspiracy theory! See this view of the tree prior to removal (on the left side of the pic next to the blue tourist sign).
The last time we wrote about a lost tree, commenters seemed apathetic at best. After another year of downtown living under our belts, do we as a neighborhood feel a little more attachment to our trees? Or is this blogger just a bona fide tree hugger?
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Comments
Yes, you are a tree hugger. Darwinism applies to the foliage type too. Note the far more robust and healthy trees that were behind it. It was the right thing to do.
I think its sad – we don’t have many trees in the area (trust me – I don’t need my allergy medicine since moving here 6 months ago) and we need them to keep our air cleaner. Besides, trees beautify neighborhoods. I’d like to see more trees even if I have to take my allergy medicine again.
I am worried about some of the tree boxes on the east side of 7th Street, between D and E NW. The boxes don’t have grates, have hard packed cement-like dirt, no evidence that anyone ever cares for these trees. Is there some city office I can contact to ask for care for these trees before they become so distressed that we lose them? They are mature trees and should have years and years of life left but won’t if the tree boxes remain so unfriendly to their well-being. Thanks.
There are trees in Penn Quarter???
Seriously..the lack of trees in some of the more dense parts of the city is really sad. I am thinking especially of U Street. I don’t know if they all burned down in the riots in the 60’s or what…but U street gets really hot in summer without any natural shade.
The Downtown Neighborhood Association just sent a proposal to Mayor Fenty seeking funds to get flowers planted in all of our tree boxes. Cross your fingers that this gets approved.
a few years ago MVSNA organized a neighborhood tree planting with Casey Trees & Urban Forestry. It was a lot of work but we got about 14 trees in the empty treewells. perhaps a planting could be organized in PQ in partnership with the Downtown BID but i think some of the wells would need to be tended to with soil &/or jackhammers.
I also saw a tree well or 2 on the 600 block of H that has small trees planted in them but were completely and inexpicably covered with asphalt. so strange.
I think if you look at some of the really old pictures of our streets that you won’t see tree boxes and trees lining nearly as many streets as today. I believe that specifically U Street didn’t have tree boxes like today. Today the U street sidewalks are pretty narrow on most blocks, and the tree boxes actually make it hard for people to pass in both directions at the same time. I personally believe you have to assess which sidewalks work or don’t work well with trees, and which sidewalks trees do well on.
The trees and sidewalk on Penn. Ave near the FBI building are beautiful, but I don’t feel the same about U Street. As the trees on U Street mature, the bricked sidewalks have raised roots pulling the bricks up, etc. I see the same thing in parts of capital hill. Maybe they also need to avoid selecting trees with shallow root structures?
All trees have a shallow root structure. A lot of the tree boxes are too small for trees, and DC hasn’t maintain trees for 50 years, and none were planted for decades. No glamour in it. It takes 2 years for DC to cut down a dead tree, remove the stump and plant a new one. It will require at least 3 calls from you to get it done too.
There are new sidewalk construction methods like concrete with grooves/channels for tree roots, and rubberized concrete to accomodate trees.
This post and its responses are one the the reasons I like Penn Quarter and Penn Quarter Living. A tree is removed in the neighborhood and twelve folks take time out of their busy lives to talk about it. Best wishes all!
Trees are an important contributor to quality of life in PQ. Unfortunately too often they are victims of neglect — the soil is compacted around the roots by foot traffic or the grates around the trees that protect the soil are too tight and they effectively girdle the tree. One small way that you can help the quality of life in the neighborhood is to avoid walking in the tree boxes even if it means stepping aside and letting on coming foot traffic pass. The sad thing about this instance of a tree succumbing to the rigors of city life is that the tree box was bricked over eliminating the possibility of adding back a tree to our shared urban landscape
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Hmmm…if a blog post about a tree falling down is never read, does anyone care?