A Walk Down Warren Street--- Part Two:                            600 & 500 blocks

The first notable tree is an ornamental pear ( probably a Callery pear), which bear inedible tiny and hard fruit, eaten by birds once frost sets in. Callery pear's main asset is its beautiful spring flowers; however, the loveliness is offset in some varieties by an odor which I will not describe further, except to call it embarrassing.  This tree's popularity among urban landscapers is also explained by its neat habit (it grows fairly short and narrow) and willingness to tolerate bad soil and poor drainage.  Yet there are further drawbacks: Callery pear rarely lives past 25 years, and is susceptible to ice damage.  This photo was taken near 621 Warren;  another specimen is across the street near the De Marchin store. 

Callery pear: an embarrassing odor?

7th Street Park surprises with a lack of diversity: it's home mostly to Norway maples (see part one of this article) and silver maples (Acer saccahrinum). Silver maples grow fast and can reach a height of 100 feet. Of the several specimens in the park, none rose quite so high. It's hard to find much in praise of silver maples in the literature of urban forestry: their limbs break easily; their shallow roots clog septic lines; they suffer from heart rot (tree looks good from the outside, but suddenly collapses from decay at its core).  But being a silver maple is not all infirmity and inconvenience to humans-- it is one of the first trees to flower in spring, and it produces (low-quality) syrup.

     

silver maple leaf