A common fault in all street planting is to put the trees too near together. (fig. 8.) This is more evident where the work has been done by the abutting property owners than by municipalities.

After trees are started and have attained some size it is extremely difficult to get them removed, even where the good of the remaining trees demands it. The removal of a fairly good tree merely because it is short lived in order to make room for a good one that will be permanent does not appeal to the average citizen. Where trees which have been planted by the property holder come under city control a strong feeling of proprietorship still remains, which is outraged by the suggestion of the removal of even poor trees. Where all the work is under city control good work is often hampered by a strong public sentiment against the removal of trees, even though they are poor or crowding.

Because of this difficulty it is extremely important that young trees be planted farther apart than at that time seems reasonable. If they are planted as far apart as is proper for mature trees the distance will be so great as to make planting seem a joke. If they are planted half the distance apart they should be when mature, good results would follow if the intermediate trees were removed when they nearly touch those to be left. As the intermediate trees would probably not be removed, or not until too late for the good of the remaining ones, planting had better be sufficiently far apart in the beginning to avoid the necessity of later removals. In the beginning the trees will be too far apart and when mature too close together, but it seems to be the alternative imposed by a misguided public opinion.

There is scarcely a community that would permit the removal of interplanted trees from a street of fine elms, oaks, or other worthy varieties without a protest that would be the almost sure political death of the administrative authorities responsible, no matter how great the need or how much expert support they might have. If short-lived intermediate trees were used they would not be likely to be taken out before they died, and they probably would not die before they had irreparably injured the permanent trees. The removal of surplus or interplanted trees can be made with least shock to the community by gradually narrowing the tree tops by severe pruning from year to year on the sides next the permanent trees until finally they are so narrow they may be removed and leave only small openings between the permanent trees. Even this method will not materially lessen the public protest at the final removal.

A common practice is to set street trees 35 feet apart. If it were practicable to remove one-half the trees at the proper time this would be a good distance, but in the eastern half of the United States and on the Pacific slope 50 feet apart is close enough for most varieties, and for the larger growing trees 60 to 70 feet would be better.