Town officials have taken steps to protect a pair of young—and in being young, vulnerable—maple saplings in Spencer’s Run from a most insidious threat: dog urine.
This sapling at Spencer's Run is newly protected by a post-and-rail fence with mesh running outside of it, to protect the growing tree from dog urine.
Canines lifting their legs against the young trees in the Waveny dog park has become enough of a concern that the town is fencing the trees in (and man’s best friend, out), Recreation Director Steve Benko said.
“I talked to a fence guy about getting the split-rail fence in there around the trees to keep the dogs far enough away not to spray it,” Benko said. “We’re looking at an 8-by-8 [perimeter], because if it’s four feet away the dog still lifts its leg and gets to it.”
This black Labrador retriever no longer can access the maple sapling inside the gate at Spencer's Run dog park in Waveny.
It’s one of several small capital improvements at the popular dog park, which last summer switched to a key code-only access system. Revenue from selling permits for dog park access goes into the general fund. Other projects now or soon underway at Spencer’s Run, including fence repair and grass seeding, will be paid for with unspent funds for capital projects in other parts of the town budget, First Selectman Rob Mallozzi said.
“It was a tough winter,” Mallozzi said. “We want to shore it up now.”
New Canaan’s mowers through occupational hazard damaged some parts of the fencing last summer and the grounds at Spencer’s Run suffered additional damage this winter on muddy days.