Estimating the stormwater attenuation benefits derived from planting four monoculture species of deciduous trees on vacant and underutilized urban land parcels

This paper presents research that was undertaken to determine whether planting deciduous trees, using intensive tree planting schemes, on vacant and underutilized urban land provides significant hydrologic benefits. This work contributes to an ongoing discussion on how to use vacant and underutilized land productively, and may be important to land use decision-makers, whose policies support the use of green infrastructure for stormwater management. Tree growth parameters for four monoculture planting schemes were modeled (all trees had a 50.8 mm caliper at planting) and included (i) 450 Ginkgo biloba, (ii) 92 Platanus × acerifolia, (iii) 120 Acer saccharinum, and (iv) 434 Liquidambar styraciflua, on a 1.6-acre parcel. i-Tree Hydro (formerly UFORE-Hydro) was used to derive a simplified Microsoft Excel-based water balance model to quantify the canopy interception potential and evaporation, based on 7 years (2002–2008) of historical hourly rainfall and mean temperature data in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. This study revealed that three of the species responded similarly, while one species (L. styraciflua) performed significantly better with respect to total canopy storage potential and evaporation, capturing and evaporating 2.9 m³/tree over the 7 years analyzed, or 1280 m³ for the total tree stand of 434 trees. The analyses presented herein demonstrate that the tree canopy layer was able to intercept and evaporate approximately 6.5%–11% of the total rainfall that falls onto the crown across the 7 years studied, for the G. biloba, P. × acerifolia and A. saccharinum tree stands and 17%–27% for the L. styraciflua tree stand. This study revealed that the rate at which a species grows, the leaf area index of the species as it matures, and the total number of trees to be planted need to be determined to truly understand the behavior and potential benefits of different planting schemes; had the mature leaf area been used as the sole indicator of the stormwater attenuating potential for each species, the A. saccharinum would have been the selected species. Also, had attenuation and evaporation per unit of tree been the only measurement reported, the P. × acerifolia stand would have been deemed the best performing tree, attenuating and evaporating 8.1 m³/tree. While the actual values presented herein may be uncertain because of a lack of locally-derived tree growth models, the approach described warrants further investigation.     

Can pruning help maintain vitality of ash trees affected by ash dieback in urban landscapes?

Hymenoscyphus fraxineus causes a destructive invasive tree disease known as ash dieback threatening the survival of common ash not only in the forests, but also in urban and landscape settings. Pruning is a potential management practice that could help maintain tree vitality and aesthetics in parks, gardens, alleys and recreation areas, as well as maintaining veteran trees having high heritage or cultural value, or trees with high genetic importance (e.g. located in clonal seed orchards). In this study we investigated the maximum distance proximal to the lesion margin at which H. fraxineus can be detected on individual branches infected by the fungus in order to provide recommendations for pruning. Pruning of branches was carried out on 38 trees in southern Sweden. Tissue samples including bark and wood were collected from the margin of the lesion and at 5 cm intervals proximal to the lesion. Molecular analysis revealed presence of H. fraxineus in 91.3% of the investigated lesions. The proportion of lesions at which H. fraxineus could be detected declined with increasing distance from the lesion margin, with a significant reduction in the number of positive samples at 10 cm proximal to the margin. At 30 cm from the lesion edge the pathogen was never detected. Our results suggest that routine pruning may help maintain the vitality of younger trees. Pruning branches at least 35 cm from visible, active lesions in the bark should exclude the fungus and therefore reduce the probability of stem infection by H. fraxineus, however this cultural control tactic may only be economically feasible for high value amenity trees.     

Relationships between bole and crown size for young urban trees in the northeastern USA

Knowledge of allometric equations can enable urban forest managers to meet desired economic, social, and ecological goals. However, there remains limited regional data on young tree growth within the urban landscape. The objective of this study is to address this research gap and examine interactions between age, bole size and crown dimensions of young urban trees in New Haven, CT, USA to identify allometric relationships and generate predictive growth equations useful for the region. This study examines the 10 most common species from a census of 1474 community planted trees (ages 4–16). Regressions were applied to relate diameter at breast height (dbh), age (years since transplanting), tree height, crown diameter and crown volume. Across all ten species each allometric relationship was statistically (p < 0.001) significant at an α-level of 0.05. Consistently, shade trees demonstrated stronger relationships than ornamental trees. Crown diameter and dbh displayed the strongest fit with eight of the ten species having an R² > 0.70. Crown volume exhibited a good fit for each of the shade tree species (R² > 0.85), while the coefficients of determination for the ornamentals varied (0.38 < R² < 0.73). In the model predicting height from dbh, ornamentals displayed the lowest R² (0.33 < R² < 0.55) while shade trees represented a much better fit (R² > 0.66). Allometric relationships can be used to develop spacing guidelines for commonly planted urban trees. These correlations will better equip forest managers to predict the growth of urban trees, thereby improving the management and maintenance of New England's urban forests.     

The feasibility of remotely sensed data to estimate urban tree dimensions and biomass

Accurately measuring the biophysical dimensions of urban trees, such as crown diameter, stem diameter, height, and biomass, is essential for quantifying their collective benefits as an urban forest. However, the cost of directly measuring thousands or millions of individual trees through field surveys can be prohibitive. Supplementing field surveys with remotely sensed data can reduce costs if measurements derived from remotely sensed data are accurate. This study identifies and measures the errors incurred in estimating key tree dimensions from two types of remotely sensed data: high-resolution aerial imagery and LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging). Using Sacramento, CA, as the study site, we obtained field-measured dimensions of 20 predominant species of street trees, including 30–60 randomly selected trees of each species. For each of the 802 trees crown diameter was estimated from the aerial photo and compared with the field-measured crown diameter. Three curve-fitting equations were tested using field measurements to derive diameter at breast height (DBH) (r² = 0.883, RMSE = 10.32 cm) from the crown diameter. The accuracy of tree height extracted from the LiDAR-based surface model was compared with the field-measured height (RMSE = 1.64 m). We found that the DBH and tree height extracted from the remotely sensed data were lower than their respective field-measured values without adjustment. The magnitude of differences in these measures tended to be larger for smaller-stature trees than for larger stature species. Using DBH and tree height calculated from remotely sensed data, aboveground biomass (r² = 0.881, RMSE = 799.2 kg) was calculated for individual tree and compared with results from field-measured DBH and height. We present guidelines for identifying potential errors in each step of data processing. These findings inform the development of procedures for monitoring tree growth with remote sensing and for calculating single tree level carbon storage using DBH from crown diameter and tree height in the urban forest.     

Diversity of street tree populations in larger Danish municipalities

Healthy and sustainable tree populations require a high diversity of genera and species. This study examined the occurrence and contents of tree inventories in Denmark's 30 largest municipalities. 59% of the municipalities had a tree inventory for street trees, but only about half of these were complete and updated. Only one municipality had a registration for trees other than street trees. Based on data from the tree inventories, the diversity of road side trees was analyzed at genus level and species level. A total of 82,072 street trees are part of the study. 11 different genera account for 92% of the total street tree stock, and 2–6 genera account for 40–80% of the street tree stock in the individual municipalities. Tilia was the most dominating genera (26%). 12 species account for 73% of the total street tree stock. The 6 most common species account for almost 50% of the total tree population. The species representing the largest numbers were Tilia × europaea (12%), Acer platanoides (10.9%), Platanus × acerifolia (7.2%), Tilia cordata (7.2%), Fraxinus excelsior (6.2%) and Sorbus intermedia (5.9%). The four most urbanized municipalities had a surplus of non-native species, but all municipalities apart from one had most street trees belonging to native species. The concluding recommendation of this study is that tree managers need to start working more strategic with their tree stock, in order to reduce the vulnerability, due to potential attacks from pests or diseases and climate change effects. A risk spreading system for the urban tree population is proposed, suggesting that no genera should account for more than 10% and no species for more than 5% of the tree population.     

Stemflow chemistry in relation to tree size: A preliminary investigation of eleven urban park trees in British Columbia,Canada

Given increased atmospheric loads in cities, quantification of stemflow chemistry is necessary for a holistic understanding of elemental cycling in urban ecosystems. Accordingly, the stemflow volume and associated solute fluxes (K⁺, Ca²⁺, Na⁺, Mg²⁺) were measured for eleven deciduous trees in a manicured park setting in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada. Over nine rainfall events from late June to early September 2013, larger trees [diameter at breast height (DBH) > 30 cm] were found to generally produce higher event stemflow volumes but lower funneling ratios than the smaller trees (DBH < 30 cm). The median flux-based enrichment ratio, which compares the solute input of stemflow to that of rainfall on a per unit trunk basal area, also tended to be greater for smaller trees than larger ones. Under all-tree and single-leader tree conditions, significant negative non-linear relationships between tree DBH and mean flux-based enrichment ratios were found for Ca²⁺, Na⁺, and Mg²⁺, but not for K⁺. These preliminary results indicate that urban trees can considerably enrich rainfall that is partitioned into stemflow, and that ion concentrations and enrichment ratios exhibit notably high interspecific variability. In this study, tree size and presence of single versus multiple leaders explained some of this heterogeneity; however, further study into those physical tree characteristics that affect stemflow volume and stemflow chemistry must be carried out if the impact and challenges of urban greening, nutrient cycling, and stormwater management initiatives are to be more fully understood.     

Allometric equations for estimating the aboveground volume of five common urban street tree species in Daegu,Korea

Quantifying urban tree biomass and carbon (C) storage by using allometric equations is required for various studies such as assessing the inventory, modelling, and measuring ecosystem services of urban trees. However, the lack of urban-specific allometric equations leads to uncertainty when estimating urban tree biomass and C storage. Therefore, we followed a nondestructive approach and developed allometric equations specifically for Acer buergerianum Miq., Ginkgo biloba L., Platanus orientalis L., Prunus yedoensis Matsum., and Zelkova serrata (Thunb.) Makino in Daegu, Korea. Diameter at breast height (DBH)-based and DBH-and-height-based allometric equations were highly accurate at estimating the aboveground volume (R² > 0.92), while the allometric equations for P. orientalis and Z. serrata developed for traditional forests overestimated volume by 68% and 427%, respectively. The addition of a height variable into the DBH-based allometric equations did not increase the reliability of the allometric equations at a local level. The mean aboveground C storage of urban street trees was 24.9 Mg C/ha except for P. orientalis with a mean of 69.7 Mg C/ha, and the total aboveground C storage of urban street trees in Daegu was 10.6 Gg C. Alternatively, a generalized allometric equation which compiled species-specific equations can be applied for large-scale estimation. The generalized equations developed in this study and those found in the literature may suggest a constant value (～2.3–2.4) for the scaling exponent in the generalized equations. Allometric equations developed from natural or artificial stands may overestimate the volume of urban street trees; therefore, estimating urban tree biomass and C storage requires urban-specific allometric equations.     

Density,diversity and richness of woody plants in urban green spaces: A case study in Chennai metropolitan city

A tree diversity inventory was carried out in urban green spaces (UGSs) of Chennai metropolitan city, India. This inventory aims to study the diversity, density and richness of trees in UGSs of Chennai. A total of one hundred 10 m × 10 m (total 1 ha) plots were laid to reveal tree diversity and richness of UGSs. Trees with ≥10 cm girths at breast height (gbh) were inventoried. We recorded 45 species in 42 genera and 21 families. Caesalpiniaceae and Fabaceae each with 6 species dominated the study area followed by Arecaceae (3). Density and stand basal area of the present study were 500 stems ha^?1 and 64.16 m², respectively. Most of the inventoried trees were native (31 species) and deciduous (28 species). Fabaceae and Caesalpiniaceae dominated the present study area in terms of stand basal area and density. The Shannon diversity index and evenness of study area were 2.79 and 0.73, respectively. The most important species and families based on species important value index (IVI) and family important value index were Albizia saman, Polyalthia longifolia and Azadirachta indica; Fabaceae, Caesalpiniaceae and Annonaceae respectively. We find Chennai's urban forest is relatively superior to many urban forests of the world in terms of stand basal area and species richness. Results emphasize the importance of enhancement of urban green spaces in Chennai metropolitan city.     

Testing the accuracy of imaging software for measuring tree root volumes

Manually measuring tree root characteristics can be inefficient and limiting. To test the application of a new digital technology in tree root architecture research, root systems from 29 green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica 'Patmore') trees were unearthed, cleaned, and photographed to create 3D models using structure from motion (SfM) photogrammetry. Three root segments from each root system were selected, marked, and removed after being photographed. The volumes of these segments (derived from the 3D models) were compared against volumes measured using water displacement. In addition to the root segments, model and water displacement volumes were compared for three complete root systems. Regression analysis showed a strong linear relation between the two volumes measurements (adjusted R² = 0.97 for the root segment data). The RMSE for the root segment volume estimates was 40.37 cm³ (12.3%), with a bias of 17.2 cm³ (5.3%). This error rate was similar to previous published work and suggests the technology used may allow researchers to improve efficiency in data capture, add new measurements (i.e., surface area) to their modeling efforts, and digitally preserve tree root systems for future study.     

Current and potential carbon stocks of trees in urban parking lots in towns of the Eastern Cape,South Africa

Greening of shopping centre parking lots is a potentially important strategy that can contribute to urban carbon mitigation efforts, improve aesthetics and the shopping experience of consumers, whilst adding to urban biodiversity. Twenty-eight shopping centre parking lots in six Eastern Cape urban centres, South Africa, were sampled to determine tree species composition, density and annual carbon sequestration potential. The best case parking lot found during the study was used as a benchmark to display the difference between current tree density and above-ground carbon stocks relative to the potential optimum. The highest tree density was 66 trees ha^?1, whereas the average density across all sampled parking lots was less than half that (27.2 ± 22.6 trees ha^?1). The average annual carbon sequestration potential per parking lot was 1390 ± 2503 kg ha^?1. Planting density was positively related to annual sequestration rates, whilst parking lot age and the mean annual rainfall of the town had no influence. Mean tree species richness per parking lot was 2.3 ± 1.8 species, with a positive relationship to parking lot size, but not to mean annual rainfall of the site. The majority of trees (62.5%) in parking lots were alien species, although newer parking lots had significantly greater proportions of indigenous species. There was no difference in mean annual carbon sequestration rate per tree between indigenous and alien trees species. Low tree densities and small parking lot areas constrained the potential for earning carbon credits from trees in parking lots. Nonetheless, planners and designers need to be more aware of the potential contribution of trees towards urban sustainability.     

Comparison of non-destructive LAI determination methods and optimization of sampling schemes in an open Populus euphratica ecosystem

Populus euphratica (P. euphratica) grows in the water-limited Tarim River Basin in spatially heterogeneous open ecosystems; thus, efforts to quantify the leaf area index (LAI) with optical instruments developed for homogeneous closed canopies have a high probability of failure. In this study, we explored methods for designing an acceptable sampling scheme to quantify the tree LAI for open P. euphratica canopies in arid areas. Field data were collected from three 30 m × 30 m plots and one 100 m × 100 m plot. We compared three indirect methods, i.e. i) allometry, ii) LAI-2000 canopy analyser, iii) Tracing Radiation and Architecture of Canopies (TRAC), and a new semi-direct method combining leaf density and crown volume (SDDV) method for quantifying the isolated tree and canopy LAI of a P. euphratica forest. We also analysed the effects of random and grid sampling designs on the accuracy of the LAI estimates obtained with the LAI-2000. The results showed that the allometric method is applicable to isolated trees with regular shapes; however, because the LAI of P. euphratica was calculated from an allometric equation based on the basal area (at 1.3 m), the allometric equation is prone to failure if the basal area is beyond a specific range. Because there are no significant differences in the plot size between the allometric and the SDDV method predictions, the proposed SDDV method can be used as an alternative for field measurements. The combination of LAI-2000 and TRAC is found to be more reliable than TRAC only, and the field view of the LAI-2000 sensor and the clumping index are important factors for sparse vegetation LAI retrieval. The results from sampling optimization showed that for the LAI-2000 instrument, the best sampling method is grid sampling, and the sampling interval should not be less than 20 m. For random sampling scheme, the number of sampling points in a 100 m × 100 m plot should be greater than 86 with a coefficients of variation of 15% and an allowable error (AE) of 0.15 m² m⁻², respectively.     

Private residential urban forest structure and carbon storage in a moderate-sized urban area in the Midwest,United States

In conjunction with urbanization and its importance as a major driver of land-use change, increased efforts have been placed on understanding urban forests and the provisioning of ecosystem services. However, very little research has been conducted on private property and little is known about the structure and function of privately owned urban forests. This research examines the structure of and carbon storage services provided by private residential urban forests in a moderate-sized Midwestern city. The primary research questions are as follows: What is the structure of private urban forests, and how does it vary across parcels? How much carbon is stored in tree and soil pools of private urban forests, and how does carbon vary across parcels? Ecological inventories were conducted on 100 residential parcels within 14 Neighborhood and Homeowners Associations of varying size and development age. Tree species richness, diversity, density, and diameter distribution were determined on a per parcel basis and for the entire tree population sampled. Further, tree and soil carbon storage were determined for each parcel. Results of this research demonstrated large variability in per-parcel tree metrics. Twelve of the parcels sampled had two or fewer trees, while eleven had greater than 50 trees. Further, tree carbon storage ranged from no carbon to 11.22 kg C m^?2. Alternatively, soil carbon storage was less variable and averaged 4.7 kg C m^?2, approximately 1.9 times higher than the average carbon stored in trees (2.5 kg C m^?2). Management efforts aimed at maintaining or enhancing carbon storage and other ecosystem services should focus on both soil protection and maximizing services in living biomass. Our results demonstrate that sustaining tree-produced ecosystem services requires maintenance of large old trees and species diversity, not only in terms of relative abundance, but also relative dominance, and in combination, species–specific size distributions.     

Assessing the performance of urban forest carbon sequestration models using direct measurements of tree growth

Across cities worldwide, people are recognizing the value of greenspace in ameliorating the health and well-being of those living there, and are investing significant resources to improve their greenspace. Although models have been developed to allow the quantification of ecosystem services provided by urban trees, refinement and calibration of these models with more accurate site- and species-specific data can increase confidence in their outcomes. We used data from two street tree surveys in Cambridge, MA, to estimate annual tree mortality for 592 trees and diameter growth rates for 498 trees. Overall tree turnover between 2012 and 2015 was relatively low (annualized 3.6% y⁻¹), and mortality rate varied by species. Tree growth rates also varied by species and size. We used stem diameter (DBH) and species identity to estimate CO₂ sequestration rates for each of 463 trees using three different model variations: (1) i-Tree Streets, (2) Urban Tree Database (UTD) species-specific biomass allometries and growth rates, and (3) empirically measured growth rates combined with UTD biomass allometries (Empirical + UTD). For most species, the rate of CO₂ sequestration varied significantly with the model used. CO₂ sequestration estimates calculated using i-Tree Streets were often higher than estimates calculated with the UTD equations. CO₂ sequestration estimates were often the lowest when calculated using empirical tree growth estimates and the UTD equations (Empirical + UTD). The differences among CO₂ sequestration estimates were highest for large trees. When scaled up to the entire city, CO₂ sequestration estimates for the Empirical + UTD model were 49.2% and 56.5% of the i-Tree Streets and UTD estimates, respectively. We suggest future derivations of ecosystem service provision models allow localities to input their own species-specific growth values. By adding capacity to easy-to-use tools, such as i-Tree Streets, we can increase confidence in the model output.     

Defect-disorder and risk assessment of heritage trees in urban Hong Kong

Heritage trees in a city, echoing factors conducive to outstanding performance, deserve special care and conservation. To understand their structural and health conditions in urban Hong Kong, 30 defect-disorder (DD) symptoms (physical and physiological) subsumed under four tree-position groups (soil-root, trunk, branching, and crown-foliage) and tree hazard rating were evaluated. The surveyed 352 trees included 70 species; 14 species with 233 trees were native. More trees had medium height (10–15 m), medium DBH (1–1.5 m) and large crown (>15 m). In ten habitats, public park and garden (PPG) accommodated the most trees, and roadside traffic island (RTI) and public housing estate (PH) had the least. Tree dimensions and tree habitats were significantly associated. The associations between the 2831 DD and tree-position groups, tree habitats and tree hazard rating were analyzed. Fourteen trees from Ficus microcarpa, Ficus virens and Gleditsia fera had high hazard rating, 179 trees from 22 species moderate rating, and 159 trees from 55 species low rating. RTI, roadside tree strip (RTS), roadside tree pit (RTP), roadside planter (RP) and stone wall (SW) had more moderate hazard rating, and PPG, roadside slope (RS) and government, institutional and community land (GIC) more low rating. Redundancy analysis showed that DD were positively correlated with RTS, RTP, RP and SW, but negatively correlated with PPG, RS and GIC (p < 0.05). The DD significantly increased tree hazard rating and failure potential. Future management implications for heritage-tree conservation and enhancement focusing squarely on critical tree defect-disorder in urban Hong Kong were explored, with application to other compact cities.     

Ozone forming potential of tropical plant species of the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra state of India

Volatile organic compounds (VOC) are emitted by many plants. In this study, sixty common plant species of the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra, India were examined for VOC (isoprene and monoterpene) emissions. Plant species VOC emission rates ranged from undetectable to 75.2 μg g^?1 h^?1. Dalbergia sissoo exhibited a maximum VOC emission rate of 75.2 μg g^?1 h^?1. Ozone forming potentials (OFP) of the sixty plant species were also estimated using the method of Benjamin and Winer (1998). Maximum ozone forming potential of 77 g O₃ (tree)^?1 d^?1 was observed in the case of Mangifera indica. Out of 60 species, 26 species (43.3%) had low OFP (less than 1 g O₃ (tree)^?1 d^?1), 18 species (30%) had medium OFP (less than 1–10 g O₃ (tree)^?1 d^?1) and 16 species (26.7%) had high OFP (more than 10 g O₃ (tree)^?1 d^?1).     

The influence of increasing tree cover on mean radiant temperature across a mixed development suburb in Adelaide,Australia

The implementation of trees in urban environments can mitigate outdoor thermal stress. Growing global urban population and the risk of heatwaves, compounded by development driven urban warmth (the urban heat island), means more people are at risk of heat stress in our cities. Effective planning of urban environments must minimise heat-health risks through a variety of active and passive design measures at an affordable cost. Using the Solar and Longwave Environmental Irradiance Geometry (SOLWEIG) model and working within the bounds of current urban design, this study aimed to quantify changes in mean radiant temperature (T_mrt) from increased tree cover at five different 200 × 200 m urban forms (including compact mid-rise development, residential and open grassy areas) within a suburb of Adelaide, Australia during summer. Following a successful validation of SOLWEIG, street trees were strategically distributed throughout each of the five urban forms and the model run over five warm sunny days (13–17 February 2011). Results showed spatially averaged daytime (7:30–20:00) T_mrt reduced by between 1.7 °C and 5.1 °C at each site, while under peak heating conditions (16 February, 14:00) T_mrt reduced by between 2.0 °C and 7.1 °C. The largest reduction in T_mrt under peak warming conditions was at the residential site, despite having the fewest number of trees added. Directly below clusters of trees, T_mrt could be reduced by between 14.1 °C and 18.7 °C. SOLWEIG also highlighted that more built-up sites showed higher T_mrt under peak warming conditions due to increased radiation loading from 3D urban surfaces, but over the course of the day, open sites were exposed to greater and more uniform T_mrt. This study clearly demonstrates the capacity of street trees to mitigate outdoor thermal stress and provides guidance for urban planners on strategic street tree implementation.     

Spatial distribution of saplings in heavily worn urban forests: Implications for regeneration and management

We studied the spatial distribution of saplings in the vicinity of other saplings and mature trees in heavily worn urban forests. Our aim was to identify favorable microsites for saplings to regenerate under different levels of wear. We hypothesized that these safe microsites were situated close to tree trunks that might offer shelter from trampling caused by humans and their pet dogs. The distribution of saplings was explored at 0.1–0.6 m to the nearest sapling and 0.1–2 m to the nearest mature tree. Sorbus aucuparia was the most abundant sapling species, followed by Populus tremula, Betula pubescens and Picea abies. These species all tended to cluster with their conspecific saplings and were generally randomly distributed with respect to mature trees. Saplings of S. aucuparia and P. tremula favored growing close to mature P. abies (already at 0.4–0.8 up to 2 m from the trunk base, respectively) and S. aucuparia trees (at 0.2–0.4 m up to 2 m). Betula sp. and Acer platanoides grew close to Pinus sylvestris trees. Furthermore, with increased levels of wear, saplings clustered more likely together and close to tree trunks. The results are contrary to the gap regeneration hypothesis known from rural unworn forests where saplings often grow in canopy gaps. We suggest the idea of a ‘sheltering group’, i.e. tree groups and thickets of densely growing conspecific saplings, for the maintenance of regeneration of saplings and other vegetation in heavily worn recreational forests. Since urban forestry may strongly affect the existence and spatial location of a high variety of microhabitats, small-scale spatial exploration is needed to identify microsites that offer opportunities for natural regeneration under heavy recreational use. To maintain natural regeneration and the survival of saplings in worn urban forests, we recommend microhabitat-level species-specific forest management.     

An index to identify suitable species in urban green areas

This paper presents a method that allows sorting of tree and shrub species according to their suitability for planting in urban areas of Madrid (Spain). Suitability was determined from a weighted index for each species according to the severity of damage (biotic, abiotic, and anthropogenic; stem wounds are the main problem in trees, while dead plants are the most important problem in shrubs, seasonal flowers, and vines) and to risk, which was obtained from a new measure, observed Species per Green Area per Year (SAYs). The greater the number of damaged SAYs, the less suitable a species was considered for outdoor planting. For this purpose, 49 green areas corresponding to 141 ha were sampled during 2005–2008. The tree species least recommended for planting include Robinia pseudoacacia, Ulmus sp., Acer negundo, Platanus × hybrid, Populus Boolleana. The shrubs least recommended for planting are Nerium oleander, Cotoneaster sp., Euonymus europaeus, Pyracantha coccinea, and Pittosporum tobira. Statistical analysis reveals that native species have a lower percentage of damaged SAYs than non-native species.     

Effect of urbanization and climate change in the rooting zone on the growth and physiology of Pyrus calleryana

It is well known that trees can reduce the urban heat island and adapt our cities to climate change through evapotranspiration. However, the effects of urbanization and anticipated climate change in the soil–root rhizosphere have not been widely investigated. The current study studied the growth and physiology of the urban tree Pyrus calleryana grown in a factorial experiment with or without urbanization and simulated climate change between April 2010 and December 2012 in the Botanical Grounds of the University of Manchester, UK. The study indicated that urbanization and simulated climate change had small but contrasting effects on tree growth and morphology. Urbanization increased tree growth by 20–30%, but did not affect leaf area index (LAI) and showed reduced peak water loss and hence evapotranspirational cooling. Although soil moisture content in the upper 20 cm was higher in the urbanized plots, urbanization showed reduced sap flux density, reduced chlorophyll a:b and delayed recovery of chlorophyll fluorescence (Fv:Fm) throughout the experimental period. In contrast, simulated climate change had no effect on growth but increased LAI by 10%. Despite being more water stressed, trees grown in simulated climate change plots lost more water both according to porometry and sap flow measurements. Simulated climate change increased peak energy and water loss by around 13%, with trees having an average sap flux density of around 170 g cm^?2 d^?1, 40% higher than trees grown in control plots. Our study suggested that transpirational cooling benefit might be enhanced with a longer growth season and higher soil temperature in places such as Manchester, UK in future, but potentially at the expense of photosynthesis and carbon gain.     

High carbon losses from established growing sites delay the carbon sequestration benefits of street tree plantings – A case study in Helsinki,Finland

We assessed the net carbon (C) sequestration dynamics of street tree plantings based on 10 years of measurements at two case study sites each with different tree species in Helsinki, Finland. We assessed C loss from tree soils and tree C accumulation, tested the applicability of pre-existing growth and biomass equations against observations, and estimated the time point for the beginning of net C sequestration for the studied street tree plantings. The tree woody biomass C accumulation in the first 10 years after planting was 18–32 kg per tree. At the same time the C loss from the growth media was at least 170 kg per growth media volume (25 m³) per tree. If this soil C loss was accounted for, the net C sequestration would begin, at best, approximately 30 years after planting. Biomass equations developed for traditional forests predicted more stem biomass and less leaf and branch biomass than measured for the species examined, but total aboveground biomass was generally well predicted.