TOWN COMMON

NEW TREES FOR COHASSET COMMON

You may have noticed some new trees on the Common. As part of their community outreach program, the Cohasset Garden Club has donated five new trees to replace dying and diseased trees in that area. Concerned citizens living around the Common and parents of the local nursery schools approached the CGC for help in getting some new trees planted to help beautify and revitalize our beautiful Common. This became a perfect catalyst to spending the CGC’s outreach funds, which had been earmarked for new tree plantings as part of the 2013 Garden Club of America Centennial Tree project. With Landscape Designer Margaret Cotter’s input, and the help of Debbie Shadd, Susan Pile and Susie Davis, the trees were purchased and then planted by Cohasset DPW and supervised by Cohasset Tree Warden, Andy Swanson. Also consulting was Daryl Rappaport from Bartlett Tree Experts.

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Three autumn cherries (Prunus subhirtella ‘Autumnalis’) were planted around the pond to replace the much beloved cherries that had died. Pink flowers open in the spring and then sporadically on warm fall days.

Also, as part of CGC’s commitment to planting native trees, two others were planted:

On the corner of Highland Avenue and Great Brewster Trail is a new tulip tree (Liriodendron tulipifera). This is a large tree with attractive tulip-shaped flowers in June, which are greenish yellow with orange throats. The unusually shaped leaves turn a lovely yellow in the fall. This is a tree native to eastern North America.

Finally, a red maple (Acer rubrum ‘October Glory’) was planted in a space between two honey locusts across from the Unitarian Parish house on North Main Street. This maple has brilliant crimson-red fall foliage, which persists on the tree weeks after other trees have defoliated. This is another tree native to eastern North America.

In 1985 tree identification tags were added by the club to 22 (labeling one of each kind) of the 48 trees existing on the Common at that time. Identification tags will soon be added to the recently planted trees. All tags are specially treated metal labels of the type used at the Arnold Arboretum and are placed at a seven foot height as they are on the Boston Common.

In September 1986 the CGC planted a Tulip tree on the Common in honor of CGC member Helen Warren Smith’s 100th birthday. And in April 1990 we planted a “disease free” Elm on the Common for Earth Day.

It is hoped that our town and all who visit for many years to come will enjoy all of these trees.