People accustomed to observing trees, especially in urban areas, find no shortage of dismaying situations to gnash their teeth over. Trees in too-small plots, buried root balls, broken and vandalized branches, poor stock, and unnecessary pruning are just a few of them. Most of these are situations that ordinary citizens can’t do anything about. But there are… More
For today’s post, experts L. Peter MacDonagh and James Urban, FASLA tackle one of the most commonly asked questions we hear about whether tree stability is related to an evenly developed root ball. Here is what they have to say. -LM Without a completely developed root system on all four sides, won’t trees fail? What… More
Every Monday for the next five weeks, we’ll be running a blog entry by Peter MacDonagh about the history of street trees in Holland (to see Peter’s fantastic series on the history of street trees in Paris, click here). Peter’s knowledge is incredible; I promise you don’t want to miss this unusual history of Holland… More
In early June, the Portland Oregonian published an editorial titled, “Portland’s Cadillac Tree Plan.” In it, the board suggested that Oregon’s urban trees are doing great just the way they are, and argued that the city’s new tree code is costly and ineffectual. (The code was adopted two years ago but has not been implemented due… More
You’re invited to our third James Urban webinar this year! The topic is using trees and soils in urban stormwater management applications.
Back in December 2012, we reported the first preliminary results of Stormwater Treatment Performance Monitoring by Dr. William Hunt, Jonathan Page, and Ryan Winston, of two Silva Cell Systems in Wilmington, North Carolina. Final results and statistics are expected later this summer. In the meantime, preliminary results are so promising that we want to share… More
Today’s post is by Alison O’Connor, Horticulture Agent with Colorado State University Extension in Larimer County. It originally appeared on her blog, Co-Horts, and is reprinted here with her permission. Thanks, Alison! -LM Unless you’ve been vacationing in southern France for the past few weeks, you know that Colorado has had an interesting spring. I’m… More
While “summer reading” may conjure up frivolous beach novels that you don’t mind getting wet or sandy, may I recommend something both entertaining and informative this summer. The Dandelion Hunter: Foraging the Urban Wilderness by Rebecca Lerner is a combination memoir/essay about urban foraging, or the art of finding food and medicine in the plants… More
There are some individuals drawn to the comfort of indoors, fed by books and stories of adventures from arm’s length in their armchairs. I am not among them. Having been given a diagnosis of “terminal wanderlust,” I have always felt more comfortable under the open sky rather than under a roof. The sizable amount of… More
This post, by Linda Chalker-Scott, addresses a misperception that we encounter frequently about the efficacy of using gravel or sand beneath soil to aid drainage. Linda mythbusts this incorrect belief handily. This article originally appeared on her blog, The Garden Professors. It is reprinted with her permission. -LM I’m just starting to think about getting my… More
In the world of Low Impact Design (LID), the terms raingarden and bioretention are often used interchangeably. However, there are some inferred differences between these two LID practices. These differences were highlighted during recent work with the Washington Department of Ecology, which designated Silva Cell as functionally equivalent to a bioretention facility.
May’s issue of Arboricultural Consultant, the magazine of the American Society of Consulting Arborists (ASCA) has side-by-side articles by James Urban, FASLA, and Nina Bassuk, Ph.D. discussing different methods for providing trees with soil underneath paving. Jim’s article is on “Comparing Silva Cells and Structural Soil,” and Nina’s is on “The Why’s and How’s of… More
Soil. Stormwater. Sustainable Infrastructure.
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