Tree giveaway is Saturday

The Washington Tree Beautification Committee will hold its tree giveaway Saturday in Central Park. The event begins at 8 a.m. At last year?s event, 100 people lined up to grab a tree. To ensure wide distribution, please take only one tree.

All of the trees are ?bare root? and ready to plant. However, before planting residents should dial the number for Iowa One Call (1-800-292-8989). This should be done a minimum of 48 hours prior to the desired time of planting. The committee recommends marking the desired location with a marker of some kind that is at least 15 inches tall.

If residents plan to plant a tree in their terrace they must pick up a tree permit from city hall. Not at all species of trees may be planted in the terrace.  

The ?small? trees range in height from 10 to 30 feet. Even the small trees should be planted in a terrace of at least 6 feet in width. They include the winged burning bush, a tree with great red fall color and ideal for a small area. The Kousa Dogwood is a small flowering tree that develops white blooms which later turn into pinkish-red fruit. The Redbud welcomes every spring with eye-catching purple-pink flowers.

The Crabapple sports dark green foliage with burgundy accents in the spring and requires no pruning. The Autumn Brilliance Serviceberry is a graceful tree whose foliage turns a bright reddish orange. The Frontier Elm has a lovely red-purple autumn color and is highly resistant to Dutch Elm disease.

The Red Sunset Maple is among the ?medium? trees given away Saturday. Its foliage is glossy and dark green and becomes orange-red in the fall. It tolerates partial shade, heat and drought rather well. It should be planted in a terrace of no less than 10 feet in width. His Majesty Corktree features a rounded crown and no seed litter. It is highly resistant to insects and diseases, and can be planted in a terrace of 6 feet.

The Heritage Birch tree is known for its creamy white exfoliating bark. The minimum terrace width for it is 12 feet. The Sugar Maple is a rounded upright tree with beautiful autumn colors. The Tulip tree is the tallest tree given away. A mature tree stands at 80 to 100 feet tall. The tree flowers from late April to June, usually high in the canopy with yellow-green petals. It is not for terrace planting.  

The committee also distributes a few varieties of evergreen trees. The Black Hills Spruce is a slow-growing compact tree that is dense and great as a windbreak. It should not be planted in the terrace. The Australian Pine is deer-resistant and has long, stiff green needles. It has a dense, pyramidal form that has mid-sized brown oval cones.