Sorry if I posted this in the wrong area- I couldn't find another place, ie, "inaccessable gardening"

Maybe barberries or roses or blackberries, put up temporary fencing, w/ yellow 'crime scene' tape until it gets established, good luck!...

What about yucca filamentosa? They grow like gangbusters here in zone 5.

I thought barberry - sharp thorns, easy to grow, cheap. Unlikely to be stolen because its too sharp.

Barberry was also my immediate thought. And for this kind of application - I'd go for the really inexpensive Home Depot, Wal-Mart, etc. offerings vs. garden centers. Once established, they put down a pretty extensive root system making theft discouraging... a good sized specimen would take some real shovel time, thick gloves and a hatchet.

I don't have much use for inconsiderate hooligans so don't mistake this for misplaced sympathy, but one option is to make a paver pathway across the hellstrip (that's what they're sometimes called) where most of the walking is being done - in addition to planting/bouldering up the area where you DON'T want people walking. This isn't only for the hooligans; you want to make the area accessible enough for normal people while "enabling" the hooligans to conform to pedestrian norms while in the area. Also, before you thorn it up, keep in mind that someone will be gardening and cleaning up litter...

Dear Skimpton,

I'm not sure if I'd do spiky things or rocks that stick out of the ground. I live in your area too and because the parkway is public property the city could get on your case if one of the kids got hurt because of the changes you initiated. I know it's ridiculous but I've been in court twice regarding my parkway and had to ammend it considerably. Karin's idea about sturdy paver pathway might work best along with a stout fence right around the tree.

I do sympathize, I think it's a shame that some young people can't respect living things.

The only problem with putting in pavers or other such friendly things is that the kids are pulling actual branches off of the young tree- They'd still be able to do that. There are sidewalks on either side of the parkway for regular walkers.

Gotta love chicago and its bureaucracy. What did they make you do? Were the things you had to do in the Chicago building code?

I am in sympathy with karin, would you really want to poke a kids eye out with a yucca because he/she encroached upon a public area that you consider your own? I hope not. In case you cannot remember how restricted you felt when you were young.

Dear Skimmton,

I'm not even that fortunate, I live in Cicero which is even more! political. The nasty old neighbor next door - the official lawn king, decided he was tired of looking at my plants on the parkway and called the town on me. We reached a compromise - a 18 inch setback from the curb (I used flagstone) althought the town attorney complained about that too. and then the plants have to maintained at 10 inches! I cheat though - I let them go at about 2 feet and no one seems to notice as long as I keep them very tidy. They were concerned with safety (a valid point) and the rat problem (a completely unvalid point).

Chicago, depending on which neighborhood you're in (I have many clients there) can really be rough on people regarding the parkway and even the front yard (which is private property) especially if you have a neighbor that works for city that doesn't like you. You can get away with alot more in Bucktown then say conservative Portage or Jefferson Park. I went to court with a client to Streets and Sanitation court. Almost everyone there ends up paying a fine of sorts and it aint cheap. Another friend of mine in Portage has been battling Streets and San over her two nice compost piles because of a neighbor. They made her raise both self contained piles several inches off the ground! Otherwise, they told her they'd have to go. Their excuse - rats! City Hall maybe.

I can't remember the restrictions of youth as much as I can remember being totally thoughtless. If you think they are malicious call the police, if simply thoughtless then indeed try to make the area near the tree unwalkable until the tree grows. Can you drop a pallet of masonry blocks there and leave it for a couple of years? Just kidding, sort of.

First, cudos for helping a friend with a landscape problem! Second, here in NE Ohio they call that area the 'treelawn' and officially it belongs to the city. Unofficially we can do whatever we want with the understanding that if there needs to be any sort of utility maintenance and they tear it up, then too bad for you they'll replace whatever they destroyed with the fill dirt from wherever and put down cheap grass seed (horribly ugly). I used to have problems with the neighbor kids destroying my plants/trees/berry bushes until I barked at them enough times AND promised to put in pyracanthus (Firethorn!) if they didn't show more respect for living things, plus I am outside enough I usually caught them red-handed in their landscape vandalism. I was lucky, they were young enough they still cared what non-parental adults thought. Barberry, raspberry and rugosa roses are all good and spiky but you'd need to be certain you planted a prostrate form otherwise you'd need to prune regularly, which probably isn't such a bonus for that area. Depending on how wet the area stays you could plant either ajuga (moist) or sweet woodruff (dryish) or some other seriously invasive low-growing plant that won't mind being stomped (bishops weed(variegated), creeping jenny (golden), lamium(beacon silver), pachysandra(variegated), vinca(variegated) and prune the tree up high enough the little brats can't reach the branches (spoken by a mother of four) LOL.

Dear Skimpton,

I think whatever you put on this parkway is going to be fair game for these little roughnecks. It's not going to stop their behavior.

If you know where the kids live, I'd pay a visit to their parents first and then follow up with the police next if the behavior doesn't stop. I bet the parents having a visit from the police will take care of the problem. That's what I've done around here on occasion and it usually works. I usually just tell the cops I think they're involved in destructive works (property damage for instance) and that they might be in a gang. If I tell them they're just ripping up plants the cops usually don't want to come out so you may have to embellish a little.

Or you could try a totally different approach. You might invite them into your garden and show them around. We have a billion kids around here and they get a kick over seeing a butterfly or being able to take home some cut flowers to their Mother. Most of the time I try to make friends with the little rascals. Usually works with the smaller kids and it's cut down on much of the bad behavior. They think I'm the lady with the cool garden rather then figuring out ways to get even with me.