Politics & Government

Answers to Why Some Evanston Trees Don't Look So Hot

They may actually just be late bloomers, or they may really be sick.

The following is from the City of Evanston, posted by City Manager Wally Bobkiewicz:

The City has received several inquires over the past few weeks about the state of some street trees that appear to have died over the Winter.  I asked Assistant Director of Public Works for Forestry Paul D'Agostino for an explanation:

"There are several reasons that many of the newly planted trees do not look healthy. First, there are two species that we have increased the quantities being planted over the past several years, both of which naturally leaf out much later than most other species. Both Kentucky Coffeetree and the new hybrid London Planetrees do not begin new growth until several weeks after most other trees, so they may be mistakenly diagnosed as unhealthy or even dead when compared to other nearby trees early in the season, which is not the case.

Secondly, the City introduced a new species of Oak in 2011 and 2012 – a native species called Chinkapin. Unfortunately, these new trees have not been as successful as we had hoped, and we have since stopped planting them. Many of them did not survive after the second year and are now awaiting replacement. Lastly, the combination of the 2012 drought and the extreme winter of 2013-14 has placed many of the younger trees under stress, which then makes them more susceptible to other problems. Forestry staff is doing everything we can to help the new trees survive, and we believe our survival rate for all newly planted trees will be well above 90% going forward."

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