May/June 2007 Volume 1, Issue 4
Inside this issue:
Delaware Center for Horticulture
1810 North DuPont Street
Wilmington, DE 19806
Phone: 302-658-6262
Fax: 302-658-6267
The mission of the Delaware Center for Horticulture is to improve the quality of
life in Delaware by promoting knowledge and appreciation of gardening, horticul-
ture, and conservation.
For more Tree Program information contact: Patrice Sheehan ? 658-6262 ext. 112 ? psheehan@dehort.org or Andrea
Mosher ? 658-6262 ext. 115 ? amosher@dehort.org or Adira Riben ? 658-6262 ext. 113 ? treevista@dehort.org
MAY
31
Grant Deadline!
Urban and Community Forestry
Grants must be postmarked and
mailed by today.
TREEminders
Ongoing
Mulch and Water
Prepare your tree for the drier
months ahead—replenish
mulch around the base of your
trees to help retain moisture and
to protect the tree from lawn
mowers, and be sure young
trees get watered thoroughly
once per week.
What a noble gift to man are the forests! What a debt of gratitude and admira-
tion we owe for their utility and their beauty! How pleasantly the shadows of the
wood fall upon our heads when we turn from the glitter and turmoil of the world
of man! The winds of heaven seem to linger amid their balmy branches, and the
sunshine falls like a blessing upon the green leaves; the wild freshness; and the
beautiful woodlight, neither garish or gloomy, full of calm and peaceful influences,
sheds repose over the spirit. —Susan Fenimore Cooper
JUNE
6 Ongoing
Tree Care Workshop
DCH staff and tree stewards
will be visiting newly planted
CDBG tree owners for a per-
sonal tree care tutorial. (See
inside for info on the CDBG
program and contact Adira
Riben if you are a tree steward
and would like to help)
Water and Inspect
Continue to water your trees in
dry periods, making sure that
trees planted in the last few
years receive a thorough soak-
ing at least once per week.
Also be on the lookout for signs
of insects or disease.
Join us fo
Orchards a free field trip to
Saturday, o learn about Peac Willow Creek
Contact tr
info and to evista@dehort.or
A Tasty Tree: Urban Orchards are Making a Comeback
By: Adira Riben, Tree Program VISTA
Imagine fresh fruit arriving in your
neighborhood the moment it ripens. Envi-
sion a future where children learn that
pecans come from hard capsules that fall
from trees, not cellophane packages or
sugary pies. What if we could grow and
harvest affordable and nutritious fruits and
nuts right here in Wilmington?
Not to be dismissed as a radical dream
of hippies and free-loaders, urban or-
chards have a long established history and
a promising future. From medieval
Europe to modern day India – where ¼ of
all urban trees are fruit trees, the idea of
an “edible landscape” has proven itself as
a pragmatic and tasty alternative.
Delaware is no stranger to fruit produc-
tion. Over 150 years ago peach produc-
tion in Delaware was so prolific, we were
known as the “Peach State.” While the
success of the industry built “peach man-
sions” which still stand in Milford, DE
and lead to the adoption of the peach blos-
som as the state flower, nary a tree re-
mains in many former orchards. The cul-
prit in the case of the lost peaches was a
virus known as “The Yellows” spread by
the leaf-hopper insect. The disease devas-
tated peach farming in southern Delaware
where production was highest.
Monoculture
r
t
June 30 th h
, 9:00a.m. Production!
e t o 2:00 p.m
. Orchards bring us more than food-
reserve y g for mor
our spot. e dioxide from the atmosphere (decreasing
(planting a single species within an area)
allowed the disease to spread like wild
fire among the susceptible peach trees. In
addition, many farmers felled entire or-
chards attempting to halt the spread of the
disease. Interestingly, peach trees in
northern New Castle
County were less
likely to be infected
by the Yellows be-
cause farmers grew a
more diverse crop.
The crop diversity in
Northern Delaware
was likely a happy
accident, which is
now a practice often replicated in urban
agriculture. Unable to compete with
large-scale farming operations farther
from the city, our urban forebears realized
that selling their produce locally could
yield highest profits when they expanded
from growing mostly grain for feed to
growing all kinds of crops that if shipped
from far off places would cost more.
Reviving urban agriculture is a grow-
ing trend in the U.S. and abroad. Seen as
a solution to all sorts of problems, urban
farming benefits communities by produc-
ing fresh, nutritious food and helping us
reconnect to our food system. The farms
can be used as living classrooms and help
facilitate healthy eating. Urban agricul-
ture can also allow residents who once
lived in agrarian areas to practice and
teach farming knowledge that would oth-
erwise be lost.
related benefits. Trees remove carbon
Tree Stewardship 2-3
Around Town: high-
lights of current ef-
forts to improve our
urban forest
Success of Bare Root 3
Tree Planting Has us
Eager for Another
Event
May/June Calendar 4
the greenhouse effect); they help reduce
storm water runoff, controlling flooding
and reducing water pollution; trees also
reduce temperatures and air pollutants
such as ozone and particulates; and trees
increase the strength of communities as
they reduce violence and
stress among neighborhood
residents. As the Philadel-
phia Orchard Project ex-
plains, urban orchards trans-
form derelict areas from “a
blank canvas” to a “painting
[of] a city that [is] stronger,
more beautiful, more abun-
dant and fair...”
Earthworks Boston, one player in the
burgeoning urban orchards movement has
been planting fruit trees, vines and shrubs
in the Boston metro area for the past 18
years. Their crops include raspberries,
peaches, cherries, plums, grapes, hazel-
nuts, apples and pears. Much like the
community gardening program at the
Delaware Center for Horticulture, Earth-
works Boston focuses neighborhoods with
limited resources, brining people together
to do service while learning about sustain-
able agriculture, ecosystems and plants.
The organization provides training in or-
ganizing and horticulture along with trees,
tools, mulch, and fertilizer.
Since their start in 1989, Earthworks
has planted over 800 trees and shrubs.
That’s a lot of fruit and nuts! Hmmm,
now where’s my pie pan? •
Visit the Earthworks website to learn more:
http://www.earthworksboston.org/urbanorchards/
UOreplicate.htm
 Tree Stewardship Dip, Dig, Plant, Water...Repeat!
After many months of research, planning, and anticipation for our
very first bare root tree planting event, I am happy to share with you
that nearly 100 volunteers

Around Town
Urban and Community
Forestry Grants
Twelve people attended the 2007 Urban
and Community Forestry Grant Work-
Highlights of current efforts to improve
shop on April 10. The following com-
munities are working on grant applica-
our urban forest:
tions for this year:
Gilpin Hall
Cool Springs/ Tilton Park
Union Park Gardens
East Lake
40 Acres
Bear, DE
Urban and Community Forestry Grants
from the Delaware Forest Service can be
used to fund tree management and plant-
ing in public spaces. The deadline for
grant applications is May 31
(postmarked). Also be aware that soil
tests are a requirement for the applica-
tion and kits can be purchased at DCH.
To learn how to organize and fund a
community tree project please contact
Adira Riben, treevista@dehort.org, 302-
658-6262 ext. 113.
Browntown
planted 60 trees and beautified
7 sites in Northeast Wilming-
ton.
We are excited about the re-
sults of Wilmington’s first
community-driven tree plant-
ing of such a magnitude, and
we have already begun to re-
search and plan for another Finishing the job on planting
bare root community planting day.
for a yet-to-be-determined date
(either fall 2007 or spring 2008).
Volunteers ‘dipping’ the unplanted
trees. We will update you as this event comes together, but in the
meantime if you are interested in participating, please contact
Andrea Mosher, amosher@dehort.org, 302-658-6262 ext. 115.
Westside/Hilltop
Northeast
West Center City
Eastside
Share your
tree knowledge
with a new tree owner!
Community Development Block Grant Program On Wednesday, June 6th, Tree Program
staff have planned a evening “mobile work-
The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program is an annual tree planting program
shop.” We will be visiting some 76 new tree
funded through the City’s Department of Real Estate and Housing that supports tree maintenance
owners to give them a brief tutorial on
and planting in financially disadvantaged parts of the City. This year’s CDBG project will in-
proper tree care. We would love to have
clude: planting 76 street trees; removing 35 stumps, dead, and hazardous trees; and prun-
your help in sharing this important informa-
ing 10 trees.. Tree work is carried out by a professional arborist company and will begin in early
tion. If you can help, please contact Adira
May and conclude in early June.
Riben, treevista@dehort.org,
For more info about the CDBG Program contact Patrice Sheehan, psheehan@dehort.org, 302-
302
302-658-6262, ext. 113
658-6262 ext. 112

Page 2 Wilmington Tree Press Volume 1, Issue 4 Page 3