The Parks and Recreation Department, by city ordinance, is charged with the care of trees on city property and street rights-of-way (ROW).

If you wish to plant trees in the street ROW, call the Parks and Recreation Department for Permission to plant at (316) 268-4361. We can help you make the right selection of trees for your location. Our goal is to avoid planting trees that may become a problem for you or your neighbors or the city. Planting permission is usually granted with a simple phone call and a few minutes of your time.

Factors for consideration when planting in the street ROW:

• Do you have a corner property? Be considerate of drivers pulling up to your corner and trying to see oncoming traffic on the other street. Do not place trees in a location that will block the view of traffic. It’s better to plant medium or large growing trees that can have the lower limbs raised than to plant short ornamentals.

• Avoid blocking the view of traffic as you or your neighbor back out of the driveway.

• Avoid blocking the visibility of safety signage or lights that may be in the ROW.

  • traffic signs or lights, school zone signs or lights, crosswalk signs or lights, or railroad signals.

• Use shorter maturing trees that will not grow into the wires.

• Always call Kansas One-Call 687-2470 to have buried utilities flagged before you dig.

• Plant at least 6’ away from the water meter.

• Avoid planting directly over the gas service line to your home. If the gas company has to make line repairs, it’s often the service line and the tree may be destroyed in the process.

• It’s best to avoid planting in spaces less than 5’. Tight spaces can cause roots to crack and heave concrete. If possible, plant at least 6’ from the curb.

• Most trees do not establish well if planted under the canopy of an existing tree. Trees need space and full sunlight to grow healthy strong branches that are resistant to breakage in storms.

• Consider the mature size of the tree you are planting as well as the ultimate size of any existing trees that are adjacent to the tree you are planting.

• Do you have a good loam soil or is it toward the extreme of being sand or clay? A variety of soil types are found in the Wichita area and can influence the success of your selected tree. Your local nurseryman can help you select species that will grow will in your soil and offer suggestions on fertilizer to get your tree off to a good start.

Large:

• Elm, Allee (Ulmus parvifolia 'Allee')
• Elm, Athena (Ulmus parvifolia 'Athena')
• Elm, Lacebark (Ulmus parvifolia)
• Gingko, Autumn Gold (Ginkgo biloba 'Autumn Gold')
• Hackberry (Celtis occidentalis)
• Honeylocust, Shademaster (Gleditsia triacanthos inermis 'Shademaster')
• Honeylocust, Skyline (Gleditsia triacanthos inermis 'Skyline')
• Honeylocust, Thornless (Gleditsia triacanthos inermis)
• Linden, American (Tilia americana)
• Maple, Autumn Blaze (Acer freemanii)
• Maple, Caddo (Acer saccharum 'Caddo')
• Maple, October Glory (Acer rubrum)
• Maple, Legacy Sugar (Acer saccharum 'Legacy')
• Oak, Bur (Quercus macrocarpa)
• Oak, Chinkapin (Quercus muehlenbergii)
• Oak, Columnar English (Quercus robur 'Fastigiata') 
• Oak, Northern Red (Quercus rubra)
• Oak, Sawtooth (Quercus acutissima)
• Oak, Shingle (Quercus imbricaria)
• Oak, Shumard (Quercus shumardii)
• Oak, White Swamp (Quercus bicolor)
• Planetree, Bloodgood London (Platanus x acerifolia 'Bloodgood')

Medium: Can be used under tall power lines.

• Crabapple, Flowering (Malus species)
• Ginkgo, Princeton Sentry (Ginkgo biloba 'Princeton Sentry')
• Goldenraintree (Koelreuteria paniculata)
• Honeylocust, Imperial (Gleditsia triacanthos inermis 'Imperial')
• Maple, Hedge (Acer campestre)
• Maple, Norwegian Sunset (Acer truncatum ‘Norwegian Sunset’)
• Maple, Pacific Sunset (Acer truncatum ‘Pacific Sunset’)
• Maple, Shantung (Acer truncatum)
• Maple, Trident (Acer buergerianum)
• Pear, Aristocrat (Pyrus calleryana 'Aristocrat')
• Pear, Capital (Pyrus calleryana 'Capital')
• Pear, Chanticleer (Pyrus calleryana 'Chanticleer')
• Pear, Trinity (Pyrus calleryana 'Sylvania')
• Pistache, Chinese (Pistacia chinensis)

Small: Can be used under shorter power lines.

• Chokecherry, Canada Red (Prunus virginiana 'Schubert')
• Crabapple, Flowering (Malus species)
• Dogwood, Cornelian Cherry (Cornus mas)
• Hawthorn, Thornless Cockspur (Crataegus crus-galli vari inermis)
• Hawthorn, Washington (Crataegus phaenopyrum)
• Hawthorn, Winter King (Crataegus viridis 'Winter King')
• Maple, Amur, single trunk (Acer ginnala)
• Plum, Newport (Prunus cerasifera 'Newport')
• Plum, Thundercloud (Prunus cerasifera 'Thundercloud')
• Redbud, Eastern (Cercis canadensis)
• Redbud, Oklahoma (Cercis reniformis, 'Oklahoma')
• Tree Lilac, Japanese (Syringa reticulata)
• Wahoo, Eastern (Euonymus atropurpureus)

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