probably a bradford pear out the front door..

gawd knows they have been over planted for years ..... rotflmbo ...

ken

PS: that is a tree joke.. there are so few .... i just had to ... the left back sure looks like the shape of an oak .... middle looks like some kind of Prunus or crabapple ....good luck experts...

Callery pear was introduced to the Arnold Arboretum in 1908. 'Bradford' came out about 1950.

There are books about historic uses of plants in North American gardens, one such was on display at my local Half Price Books outlet for some months recently.

The middle tree looks like a red maple. Can't tell on the rest. Perhaps a black walnut on the right and an american chestnut on the left.

I also think the middle tree is maple, however it looks like a silver maple to me based on it's branching. The tree on the right is confusing, the leaves look like walnut but the branching resembles an elm. No idea on the tree on the left.

white oak ? the wye oak would already be a giant.

jqpublic and giant slug, I believe you are correct about the black walnut tree on the right. The family says that the daughter (one holding a baby) planted a row of black walnuts at her home, built in 1900.

Ken, that tree at the left does look like an oak. jimm, there certainly will be Wye oak trees in this town in the future. The elementary school, Scouts, and other clubs are really promoting the planting of the cloned Wye seedlings.

The small tree in the center -- red or silver maple? Crabapple? I'm still kind of reeling at the idea of planting a silver maple in the front yard.

I appreciate all these comments and would like to hear any more thoughts.

Ah, don't plant a silver maple there. It would be a landscaping mistake, not a tradition. Better to call it something else, just not a Bradford Pear :) IF it was a silver maple, it was very young in the photo and would have soon caused problems with the house.

replanting someone else's mistake.. simply for the sake of history is lunacy .. and i am a history buff ...

just because some idiot planted the wrong tree in the wrong spot.. 100 years ago ... DOES NOT MAKE IT A GOOD IDEA NOW ... OR THEN ....

ken

No danger of any silver maples or Bradford pears being planted in that front yard. The town enforces a list of banned/recommended trees for front yards having to do with creating a problem for power lines. Needless to say, both of those trees are on the No Chance list.

I'm not going to be much help with the tree in the center. Tried to make the image larger and sharpen it. Normally I don't crank pics up to more than screen width but this might be a good exception. Hope it helps.

{{gwi:472613}}

The leaves on the middle tree, esp. as magnified, don't really look like maple leaves to me. Maybe more like Prunus or Malus leaves? I could just about see having an apple tree in the front yard...

I think the tree on the right looks like an elm of some sort. There used to be alot in the Minneapolis until dutch elm killed off alot of them.

i am surely no ID expert.. but the bark banding on that young tree sure reminds me of my cherries ....

try googling

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link

It would be easier to read up on what was being planted at the time and choose from that least then to try and match what can't really be made out very well in these pictures.

The manner of growth suggest a gingko tree, although I do not know when they might have first been planted in this country.

I vote apple for the middle tree. The one on the right could be a black locust. They popcorn like that when young and alone. The texture looks right to me also. The tree on the left, I have no idea, but I would like to have one. Growth and shape are appealing. Hank

I know that houses in this town had a general appearance at that time (1895) of white picket fences and black locust trees lining the street. The locust stumps seem to last forever. Black walnut trees were around as well. There were also long perennial borders, but that's the concern of the local garden club members.

The town has encouraged the planting of newer honeylocust and locust cultivars in the historic zone along with appropriate fencing. That's why they're interested in old photos and discovering what was really used in this area, where the soil is deep clay and quite different from much of the rest of the county.

Thanks to all of you who can discern so much from an old photograph.

Long ago people used to like to plant trees for their usefulness, like pears, apples, cherries, quinces, nut trees, etc. I've seen those trees (or remnants thereof) around many of the old houses (especially farmhouses) I've been too. If you can't find out exactly what the trees are, I would suggest something that produces a usable food stuff of some sort. There are many heirloom varieties of apple available. Quinces are a wonderfully old-fashioned tree with gorgeous pink spring blooms. Black walnuts, sugar maples, and more would be wonderful additions to a period planting, in my opinion.

FataMorgana