Washington Park Vegetation Renewal & Management Report

Two views of the Mall portray this formal, linear park feature at its prime. Overarched by magnificent American Elms, the light dappled Mall was adorned with boxed palm trees in the summer months. The first view from a early 1900s postcard shows the wide a 25 feet) path with benches at the edges, backed by a swale with the lawn grading up and away. The trees are located at about a twenty foot distance from the path edges and are spaced equally along each side. In this view the Croquet Lawn area is to the left showing as a sun patch on the lawn. Trees at the north edge are evident as well.

In the second view, dating to the 1930s(?), the War Memorial appears in the distance. The area shown may be the Croquet Lawn or the King Fountain area. Again, mature elms arch over the wide path. The Potted palms are placed between the trees on both sides of the path. The landscape appears open and sunny to the right, or east, side, while the west side shows lighter foliage from trees. These trees appear to be lighted by the sun. They are located both to the side and along the north edge of the space. These two views capture the formal planting of the mall area and its relationships to the open spaces to each side in the Croquet Lawn section. In the King Fountain section tree plantings along the west side of the Mall would preset a greater enclosure while the open lawn and single trees or small groups of trees create a more open landscape on the east side.

As a body of information, the historic plan, park planting list, American Horticulturist article and collection of period views all contribute to an understanding of the character of the vegetation and spatial relationships in Washington Park in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. This period is the prirnaiy historic one for the park, during the years of William Egerton’s tenure. It is the reference period for the development of vegetation renewal and management plans for the King Fountain and Croquet Lawn areas.

A field reconnaissance was conducted in June 1992 to gain an understanding of the condition of the existing vegetation within two areas of Washington Park, the King Fountain and the Croquet Lawn. Black and white photographs (35 mm) of were taken to provide a visual record. The field notes were used to develop the Existing Conditions Plan at the scale of 1” = 60’. The plan serves as a record of the existing conditions and as a baseline data for restoration and rehabilitation efforts for the next several years. The reconnaissance entailed a detailed visual inspection of the two areas, where the species, location, girth diameter and condition of every tree; location, species, condition each shrub bed was observed and recorded. The condition of each tree was judged by apparent health on a four point scale:

significant lifespan ahead of it. Requires no immediate attention for pruning or more substantial care, with routine maintenance only in the near future.