Last month we hosted our first webinar of 2014, a conversation between James Urban, FASLA, and Doug Merkler, Resource Soil Scientist for Southern Nevada with the USDA, on the basics of designing for desert and arid soils. If you missed the live event, a recording is now available on our YouTube channel. I have to personally share how… More
One of the most misunderstood Silva Cell standards is the 18” (45 cm) setback from roadway traffic. It’s true that when Silva Cells are installed adjacent to a roadway, we require 18” (45 cm) of horizontal separation between the Silva Cells and the path of the nearest tire. There are two reasons for this requirement…. More
This is Part 3 in the History of Street Trees – British Isles series. You can read Part 1 here and Part 2 here. The lack of costly infrastructure as defensive walls, previously discussed at the beginning of part two of this series, allowed British cities to expand piecemeal into the countryside, with lower population densities…. More
Quick – name three important types of urban open spaces…public parks, community gardens, umm…roof gardens…how about cemeteries? While making space for the living invariably involves destruction of open space, the space we make for the dead can be a uniquely important part of the urban forest. We owe our historical cemeteries a great deal in… More
This is Part 2 in the History of Street Trees in Britain and Ireland. Read Part 1 of this series here. The cultural, religious, medical and agricultural vacuum that followed the collapse of the Holy Roman Empire led directly to the establishment of independent, self-sufficient catholic monasteries. The dominant monastic culture came directly from Britain, specifically… More
Urban environments depend on maintenance. In intensely used urban settings, the concept of low maintenance is not a practical reality. During the design process, landscape architects must identify the source and capability of that maintenance, and be sure that the maintenance team is informed of specialized requirements and system designs to support the success of… More
Last year, Jim Urban wrote a post for this blog entitled Against Mulch. The principle reasons he cited for his position were: 1) Mulch floats and can clog drains and releases “lots of phosphorus” as it breaks down, and 2) work by Gilman et al. that suggest that mulch does not reduce evapo-transpiration. We discussed… More
In 2012 Dŵr Cymru (Welsh Water) committed a £15 million investment in Llanelli and Gowerton to help alleviate the risk of flooding in the area through the adoption of retrofit SUDS, or sustainable Urban Drainage Systems, that utilize greenspace and trees to prevent flooding by allowing rain to soak into the ground or slowly re-enter… More
My blog, The Garden Professors, has an ongoing and lively discussion about invasive plants. Let me state up front that none of the Garden Professors is promoting invasive plants. But the issues surrounding invasive plants are extremely complex and have profound implications for many groups with whom we work in landscape horticulture and urban and… More
Long-term planning has got to be one of the biggest challenges to the way we conceive of, design, and live in the world – that is also completely essential to our survival. Why is long-term thinking such a hard sell? And is there anything we can do to be better at it? According to a… More
Despite modest amounts of annual precipitation, Ireland and Britain are among some of the most perfect places to grow trees. The high latitudes and moderating Gulf Stream of the Atlantic Ocean has insured an exceptionally temperate environment is ideal for most trees, even sub-tropical ones such as palm trees. Never too hot, never too cold,… More
While on a recent visit to northern California, I had the opportunity to interview an energetic young woman who is at the forefront of a pioneering effort to educate fellow arborists on wildlife protection. Megan Morris is a Sacramento native who, after earning a degree in biological aspects of conservation at the University of Wisconsin-Madison,… More
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