Twitter
Facebook
Reddit
Digg
Tell us what you think!Send a letter to the editor about this or any other article in The Maine Campus.
One hundred years from now, students may be relaxing and playing frisbee beneath the shade of a much different canopy on the University of Maine mall.
The Campus Arboretum and Beautification Committee and horticultural experts from off-campus are proposing to replace the current 39 ash trees with Quercus bicolor, a white oak species. “Oaks stand for strength and permanence,” said Christopher Campbell, professor in the department of biological sciences. The official decision will not be made until public discussions are heard and there is a final approval from President Kennedy.
CABC says that the ashes will never be the “stately, shade-producing trees we want in this emblematic space,” the quarter-mile stretch between Fogler Library and Memorial Gym that was originally conceived in the early 1920s as a parade ground, according to the committee’s proposal.
In December of 2004 an adviser from Carol R. Johnson Architects, Inc. in Boston, Jennifer Jones, spoke to CABC about the UMaine campus landscape and the Historic Preservation Master Plan. Jones pointed out that with their poor form, the ashes would never grow canopies that are large enough for the mall.
The current trees were planted in the 1970s, replacing the American elms that were dying of Dutch elm disease. The disease, a fungal ailment of elm trees, originated in Asia and was accidentally introduced into America and Europe.
Unfortunately, the ashes were planted beneath the shade of the elms to keep the mall more aesthetically pleasing for several years. The lack of sun structurally compromised the trees, limiting their potential for height and causing a lack of appealing form by triggering the trunks to branch low and bent. The ice storm of 1998 severely damaged the trees’ formations as well.
CABC worked with five experienced Maine nurserymen to find the perfect candidate for replacement according to Campbell. The primary requirements were sub-headed under aesthetics, growth characteristics and sustainability.
The Quercus bicolor develops a stately 60 to 70 foot oval canopy reaching to an overall height of 70 to 80 feet, while the current ashes are on average 50 feet high.
The species is long lived, 300-350 years, tolerant of soil compaction and salt, and resistant to diseases that are currently an issue or might become one.
The trees require relatively little maintenance, and the branches are mostly out of reach of people, both positive aspects.
A native of Maine, several examples of the species are currently part of the campus landscape near Nutting Hall and in the Fay Hyland Botanical Garden.
The plan is to buy 50 three-foot Quercus bicolor trees in 2006, acclimating them to the Maine climate in the Littlefield Garden Small Trees Trails area for two years while their root systems develop and size increases.
The current ashes would be cut in 2008 and replaced by 39 of the oaks, according to Campbell. The remaining 11 would be kept as back-up to replace any of the 39 that may become damaged or diseased over the years.
The estimated cost per tree including the initial purchase and future maintenance is $3,000. The costs would be covered by private donations from individuals, groups and organizations.
An open discussion will be held on campus at 10:30 a.m. on Feb. 24 and at 2:30 p.m. on March 23 in the Bangor Room of Memorial Union.
Bangor Daily News