Trees and Wildfires

Trees face many challenges including pressure from overdevelopment, climate change, exotic pests/diseases, storms etc.. One of the most noticeable environmental challenges is wildfire. Fires are often created in nature due to drought conditions and lightning strikes. Fires can also be caused indirectly from human activities and something as small as a flicked cigarette butt in the wrong place can cause a devastating fire.
While fires can be disruptive and dangerous certain species of trees have evolved to tolerate and in some cases require periodic fire events to reproduce and thrive. The US Forest Service along with many State forestry agencies routinely conduct controlled burns to help eliminate undergrowth and improve the health of forests. The National Forest Foundation further discusses how trees thrive and survive in fire prone areas.

Image used courtesy of Mike McMillan/Spotfire Images

Image used courtesy of the Government of Alberta

Vertical Forests

The typical urban environment includes many challenges for establishing a proper tree canopy. Limited space, utility and infrastructure conflicts, pollution, disease and inadequate root and canopy space are some of the more critical ones. These challenges have compelled Urban Foresters to seek out technology and outside the box thinking when it comes to finding places to plant trees. Silva cells, mounded planting, structural soil and use of the right tree in the right place has helped provide solutions for these challenges.
Recently architects and designers have found new places to start planting trees: on rooftops and within multi-story buildings. An article by Fast Company covers this latest trend. When dealing with an ever changing urban environment finding new places to plant trees should always be a priority as they provide a wealth of health and environmental benefits.

Image used courtesy of Fast Company

Image used courtesy of Inhabitat.com

 

Visual Indicators of Tree Stress

How can you tell when a tree is under stress and requires attention or maintenance? Tree stress can be caused by both environmental and manmade factors including: droughts, lightning strikes, excessive rain and wind, construction damage, utility trenching, and a host of other factors.   Some typical visual stress symptoms include sudden leaf drop, unexpected leaf color change (green to yellow or brown), canopy and/or branch wilting, amounts of dead twigs suddenly increases and sudden branch or twig drop. Ensuring your tree is inspected annually by an ISA Arborist for defects, stress, and nutritional needs is a simple way to help keep your trees healthy and green.


For information on some of the most common tree stress signs and causes, please read this AccuWeather article.

Image used courtesy of askextension.org

 Image used courtesy of TCN Journal

Image used courtesy of Staytoevents.com

 

The Future of Street Lighting and Trees

Trees and light poles/fixtures are commonplace along most streets in urban environments. While they both provide ample benefits related to quality of life and security, trees are highly regarded for their environmental attributes. However, it is not unusual for the positioning of tree canopies to conflict with safety and required on-street/pedestrian level lighting.
Older style light poles require significant maintenance to replace bulbs, which are often energy inefficient, and keep them clear from existing tree canopy. Efforts are currently underway to retrofit existing light poles with LED’s, incorporating smaller acorn light fixtures and pedestrian up-lighting into tree pits to avoid canopy conflicts. With technological advancement, research is also ongoing to potentially turn trees into light sources using bioluminescent (production of light by a living organism) genes.
How amazing would it be to have a tree lined street lit up at night using only the trees themselves! Bioluminescent animals, ferns and insects already exist in nature. According to a Fast Company Article, researchers are trying to isolate the gene that makes microalgae glow for the purpose of genetically engineering trees into natural streetlights. If successful, this could have a significant impact on future energy savings as their will be less reliance on electricity, use of traditional up-lights, and light poles along streets.

Watering New Trees

To plant and establish new trees, there are many factors to consider. Proper planting depth, bracing, and slow release fertilization are all important aspects of this process; however, tree watering is the most essential.
 
Newly planted trees suffer from over or under watering all too often. Thankfully, technology has evolved to help rectify this problem. Tree bladders were created as a way to reduce labor costs for tree establishment, and to also ensure new trees are sufficiently watered. They slowly release water over time ensuring that the rootball of trees are watered evenly and at a steady rate, typically only requiring replenishment once or twice a week. This process promotes water conservation and sustainability by saving water and money. Tree bladders are also reusable, further increasing the can provide a potential for cost savings well beyond their initial use. To learn more about watering new trees and different types of tree bladders please see below:

 

Image Used Courtesy of Tree Gator©

 

Image Used Courtesy of Tree Gator©

Image Used Courtesy of TreeDiaper©

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ep113

http://www.treegator.com/products/original/index.html

http://www.treegator.com/products/jrpro/index.html

https://www.treediaper.com/about-products.cfm



Trees, Salt Tolerance and Dunes

Trees provide many environmental benefits including habitat for wildlife, soil stabilization, shade, and removing pollution from the air.  Due to the effects from coastal flooding, king tides and sea level rise, non-salt tolerant trees are being negatively impacted with greater frequency leading directly to a loss of environmental benefits. In Fort Lauderdale, trees play a major role in urban forest sustainability and dune stabilization. As such, Fort Lauderdale is utilizing a more salt tolerant tree palette to enhance the resiliency of its trees; species such as Seagrape, Pitch Apple, Green and Silver Buttonwood and Gumbo Limbo do very well in dune/high salt environments, helping protect our shorelines from tidal events and storm surges. Incorporating more salt tolerant trees throughout the City's urban forest will continue to increase its sustainability and resiliency in the face of ongoing environmental challenges. To learn more about salt tolerant trees and the dune environment, please visit the websites below:

Image used courtesy of Broward County.

Image used courtesy of Land and Sea Marine

https://floridadep.gov/water/beaches
http://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/design/landscaping-for-specific-sites/coastal-landscape.html

https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs141p2_014913.pdf

New Tree Planting

So Spring is upon us and I normally receive a lot of questions pertaining to how and where to plant new trees in Fort Lauderdale. The first part is to identify a location on your property that is in need of a new tree whether for aesthetics, shade a source of fruit etc. Be aware that new tree planting in the City right-of-way swale will require a City landscaping permit, unless the tree(s) were provided through the City's Adopt A Tree Program. For more information on the City's Adopt A Tree Program please visit the following website: City of Fort Lauderdale Adopt A Tree Program. Next pay attention to the onsite conditions, does the proposed location have existing overhead or underground utilities, does the site receive ample sun or shade and how much room is available for a future mature tree (canopy and root room). Remember to call 811 before you dig to verify utility locations. Then you select an appropriate tree species for the location based on answers to the above questions. Make sure whatever tree you choose to plant is free from defects (girdling roots, poor structure, diseased etc.) and a minimum Florida No. 1 grade.  As for planting the tree dig out a hole that is at least 2-3 times the size of the new tree root ball, remove all burlap/wiring etc. from the rootball, place the tree on a firmly packed soil base within the planting hole backfilling around the root ball with a mix of native/top soil gently tamping it in place. Make sure that the final planting height is about 2-3" above grade as the tree will settle over time. Depending on tree size bracing and staking may be necessary. Make sure to use trunk protectors when bracing to avoid strap damage, and often trees are braced on three sides. Do not tighten the braces too much as a limited amount of play will be essential for allowing the tree to develop proper taper. Establishment watering is critical for the first 3-5 months. A general rule of thumb is to water every day for the first 30 days, every other day the next 30 days, every 3-4 days the next 30 and every 5-7 days the last 2-3 months. Please visit the following web links for additional information on proper tree planting and have fun this Spring with your new trees:

www.treesaregood.com/portals/0/docs/treecare/New_TreePlanting.pdf
https://www.arborday.org/trees/planting/containerized.cfm

http://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/woody/planting.shtml