Sunday, 8:00 AM. 55 degrees, wind S, moderate. The channel is wrinkled. The barometer predicts rain, but skies are mostly clear with some haze.The scent of lilacs wafts wonderfully onto the porch. The poppies are opening, the Iris as well, and peonies in a day or two. Bird song fills the air. It is a fine day.
The newly planted red buckeyes, Aesculus pavia, ten in all, along Sixth Street are in bloom. They will be spectacular in a few years. These are hybrids of a southeastern US native. They are a grafted tree. They don’t get too large, perhaps thirty feet in height, and should not bear fruit, a boon for a street tree.
Many well-intentioned people think all trees and particularly street trees, should be forest natives…no foreigners, no hybrids, no grafts. Acceptable street trees must have certain attributes; pest and disease resistance, strong wood and branching, a minimum of plant parts that fall to the street, adaptability to city conditions, and beauty and interest. This process of elimination leaves fewer and fewer possibilities, and the arborist needs all the help he can get from the nurseryman. Suffice it to say that the argument between nativists and horticulturists, particularly as regards street trees, is unwelcome and impractical.
The Blessing of the Fleet concert, Baroque music of Bach, Telleman and others, was excellent as usual, and the Blessing at city dock is at noon today.
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