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THE MUNICIPAL TREE OFFICERS’ ASSOCIATION OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER; AN AXE TO GRIND.
In This Issue
The Wellington Cedar
Treezilla
Parrotia
Beefsteak awareness
Toronto
SPRING 2014
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Inside this issue: Chairmans stump
5
Wellington’s Cedar
10
Treezilla
16
Toronto’s UFS
18
Parrotia for the streets 22 Beefsteak fungus
30
And finally
35
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New look Axe.
Page keys by colour for easy reference Interactive content; where you see the leaf logo then the page is ”live” so click for any internet content, try it Plants, planting and establishment Urban Forestry Management MTOA information Pest and disease management General information
Meet this edition’s contributors Chris Parker
Moray Simpson
Jeremy Barrel
Mike Dodd
If you are reading this edition of the Axe on PDF then please ensure you have the view option set for a two page spread, it is designed for on-line viewing so make use of the links embedded.
Ian McDermott
The MTOA is a fully constituted not for profit organisation . The views expressed in the magazine may not reflect the official views of the MTOA and the association accepts no liability for any views or technical advice presented by its contributing authors.
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Upcoming Events.
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February Arb. Job Fair
March BS 8545 Road Show MTOA quarterly meeting
April Trees, People and the Built Environment II
May ArborCamp ISA European congress
June TRAQ Course MTOA Quarterly meeting
Please submit your calendar dates to the Editor
MTOA Chairman, Moray Simpson .
The Chairman's Stump. It’s a very welcome back to the “Axe to Grind” with its new editor Ian McDermott, otherwise known to most as Mac. In the tradition of the Axe, the newsletter is in very capable hands with Mac at the helm, as it was with previous editors Portia and Elton who did sterling work bringing the latest industry news and research to you. Since the last edition of the “Axe”, there has been a lot happening with the MTOA. Last year the Greater Yorkshire Tree Officer Group and the MTOA signed a memorandum of understanding. To cement our relationship with the GYTOG our next seminar on the subject matter “Trees in the Hardscape” will be held in York on the 30th of April. We’re currently finalising details with the speakers as I write this, however knowing who has confirmed so far, I can guarantee that if you intend to plant trees in hard surfaced areas, you will not be disappointed. So keep this date free in your diaries. As with all our events, this seminar will be priced very keenly. We are fully aware that Council training budgets are disappearing down the plughole faster than dirty bathwater, so as with all our events, MTOA members will pay a very much reduced rate than that for nonmembers. Also as a MTOA member, you will get priority on places at our events, so when we open them up for all and the places are limited, you get first dibs. Last year we also signed a concordat agreement with the Ancient Tree Forum and we launched our all singing and dancing new website up. Many thanks are due to Sybs, who has done a cracking job designing the website. Please check it out. We are endeavouring to add new industry news on a regular basis and in (Continued on page 6)
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the members area you will also find useful documents, copies of MTOA seminar speakers’ presentations and lots more. One of the key things about this members only part of the website, is that you as a MTOA member can upload PDF’s, photographs or just ask for advice, knowing that only other MTOA members will be able to read your post (provided you follow the instructions for making your post private to the members area). As a frequent user of another well known arb internet forum, I think this private tree officers forum is quite a good idea, as there’s certain delicate queries I know I would like help on, however I wouldn’t want all and sundry to know what I was asking. If you’ve ever posted a quite innocuous comment or query on a public arb web forum before, you will know how this can be taken out of context or some smart arse decides to knock you down. Well with the MTOA members only posting area, consultants and others won’t be able to read your post and fellow tree officers, who are in the same boat (which sometimes feels like a leaky sieve) as you, will try and help. So please visit the website and make use of the private forum. If you’re an MTOA member and you haven’t had your members area password and username, please let us know and we will get one issued for you. If you’re involved in trees and have a .gov e-mail address, you can become a member. Visit the website to join. One piece of current news that I would like to share with you is that "The European Tree of the Year" competition is now on. Everyone can vote for their favourite tree from the list. One tree on the list, the Welsh entry is the "Oak at the Gates of the Dead". This tree is very special to me as its within my own patch, indeed I placed it under the protection of a TPO back in 2010. It is a special ancient oak tree in my patch in the Wrexham County Borough. It is a fantastic ancient oak tree and worthy of a vote. Obviously I don’t want to influence your voting, but in the grand tradition of political gerrymandering, please vote for the Oak at the Gates of the Dead. To Vote click on the link on page 17
Finally, before I sign off, I would add that in 2013 the MTOA has been involved as a key stakeholder in assisting DEFRA develop the Plant Health Risk Register and more recently the Plant Biosecurity Strategy. Along with the AA and LTOA we have been representing the urban forestry and amenity tree sector at meetings with DEFRA. In the next issue I will look at this and the issues pertaining to tree pests and diseases and biosecurity in more detail.
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Rising Concerns Over Tree Pests and Diseases N
ew research has found that the number of pests and disease outbreaks in trees and forests across the world has been increasing.
The review "The consequences of Tree Pests and Diseases for Ecosystem Services" by scientists from the universities of Southampton, Cambridge, Oxford and St Andrews is published in the journal Science. The research shows that the experience of widespread death of trees, similar to that seen from Dutch elm disease and with the arrival last year of the new fungal disease of ash -- Chalara fraxinea -- has not been unique to the UK. Furthermore, there is growing concern that aspects of globalisation -- in particular, high volumes and new forms of trade -- may increase the risk of disease spreading and provide opportunities for genetic re-assortment which can enhance pathogenicity (the ability of an organism to cause disease). Trees and forests provide a wide variety of ecosystem* services in addition to timber, food, and other provisioning services, such as carbon sequester and storage, reducing flood risk and leisure use. The researchers say that new approaches to pest and disease management are needed that take into account these multiple services and the different stakeholders they benefit, as well as the likelihood of greater threats in the future resulting from globalisation and climate change. However, identifying all species that may become pests will be impossible and researchers stress the importance of risk management at "pathways of introduction,"
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especially where modern trade practices provide potential new routes of entry for pests and pathogens. They argue that science-based policy and practice can prevent the introduction of new diseases and improve recovery and ongoing management, this includes the breeding of resistant trees and development of effective bio-control systems. One of the review authors Peter Freer-Smith, who is a visiting Professor in the Centre for Biological Sciences at the University of Southampton, said: "Modern pest and disease management for plants and the natural environment needs to be based on an extensive science base. We need to understand the molecular basis of pathogenicity and herbivores, as well as why some species reach epidemic prevalence and abundance." Researchers also examined the difficulties of maintaining tree health and considered the consequences of pests and diseases for the full range of ecosystem services provided by trees. The term "pest" and "disease" was used to describe all pathogens and small-to medium-size insect herbivores that -- by causing tree damage and death - disrupt the ecosystem services provided by trees. Many of the benefits from woodlands and forests, for example carbon storage, maintenance of biodiversity and recreational use, are un-costed and enjoyed by a range of stakeholders. This raises difficult questions about who should be responsible for measures to protect tree health.
University of Southampton. "Rising concerns over tree pests and diseases. " ScienceDaily,� 15 Nov. 2013. Web. 21 Dec. 2013
* An ecosystem is a community of living organisms (plants, animals and microbes) in conjunction with the non-living components of their environment (things like air, water and mineral soil), interacting as a system.
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Due to the extensive international press coverage, most of you will already be aware that The National Trust felled one of Britain’s most important heritage trees, The Duke of Wellington Cedar, at Kingston Lacy House in Dorset, just before Christmas. Jeremy Barrell, who knew this tree well from working on it in the early 1980s and visiting it only a few months ago, now updates us on the controversy that surrounded its removal.
The magnificent Duke of Wellington Cedar, more than 20m in height and with a trunk diameter of 2.3m (14/09/13).
Watch this video for an overview, set against a backdrop of one of the trees being felled: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BypBkilAHcI&feature=youtu.be Read more detail on the background at: http://www.barrelltreecare.co.uk/pdfs/BTC88-BriefingNote-Complete-080114.pdf. On 14th January 2014, The National Trust (South West Region) issued a statement on its blog that can be seen at: http://www.ntsouthwest.co.uk/2014/01/duke-of-wellingtons-tree-at-kingston-lacy/#comments. It is worth reading this to review the comments beneath. Anyone accessing this information will be well-placed to form their own view on what happened.
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Summary of progress since the video was released Stepping back from the detail, and setting aside the seriousness of the loss of this tree, 2. this affair is interesting to arboriculturists for a number of reasons. It is the first time that modern media has been so successfully mobilised to expose poor decision-making and to shame an organisation that actively promotes its ethical credentials relating to heritage trees. In the context of the small size 3. of the arboricultural community, in excess of 5,000 hits for the video since it was launched is a staggering response that would be hard for any member-based organisation to ignore. Furthermore, that response was international, with enthusiasts and professionals alike, joining together to support a common cause. Of course, it is a UK issue and so, as expected, the UK polled the most with 67% of the views, the US was second with 10%, Canada and New Zealand with 5%, Australia with 4%, Sweden with 2%, and Germany, Holland and France with 1%, so very strong international support. It is a great demonstration of how small ordinary people like you and me can make a big difference if they are given a framework within which to voice their disapproval. The protest was almost universal and the numbers, along with its breadth, give it significant weight.
The Trust’s own internal specialist advisors and the external consultant’s analysis? What are you doing to reassure the public and Members that this seemingly renegade action by the South West Region is an isolated incident and not endemic within the wider Trust administration framework? What changes do you intend to make to The Trust’s decision-making framework to reassure the public and Members that any remaining heritage trees it has under its care will be properly identified and responsibly managed in the future?
At the time of going to press, there had been no response, but I do intend to continue asking until there are some appropriate answers. In the meantime, please promote the video where you can to reinforce this emerging platform to lobby for change. Professional, moral and ethical issues raised by this incident
The felling of The Duke of Wellington Cedar is a sorry affair by any standards of ethical and professional behaviour, so what lessons can be drawn for setting more morally robust benchmarks for dealing with similar Turning back to the main issue, the challenge situations? Here is some further commentary now is to work out is how to use this strong mandate to reduce the chances of other special on important issues that I think deserve some careful thought: trees suffering the same fate. As the video neared 5,000 hits, I felt that this was enough Could this tree have really been retained ? support to write to the Director General of the The National Trust has promoted such a web of National Trust, Dame Helen Ghosh, and the misinformation through its one-sided public Chairman, Simon Jenkins, to pose some statements and its refusal to release all the questions about the way this matter has been expert reports that any casual observer could managed. Here is what I asked on behalf of be forgiven for not being clear on this point. our profession, the general public and the There should be no confusion; all the expert National Trust Members: tree advice, both internally and externally, 1. Were you aware of the local decision by advocated the tree could be retained with the South West Region to fell a tree of pruning. Of course, the Trust are now national importance against the advice of
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Stump cross-section showing an advanced column of central decay (darker colours) that has been compartmentalized, with limited breaches into the outer wood. Most importantly, there is a substantial outer width of lighter coloured sound heartwood and white sapwood beyond (mostly trimmed off in the felling process), which provides solid support for the tree. This confirms that the original Picus® results released by The National Trust were misleading and, in the context of no significant discovered root decay, there was no defensible justification for felling this tree on the grounds of instability (Continued from page 11)
international discussion on this point in the comments posted on the Trust’s South West Region blog at the above link.
attempting to argue that the tree would have looked terrible after pruning and that justified · The selective use of information to felling it without even attempting to see what manipulate public opinion: its pruned form would have looked like. I All the video footage and published press substantially pruned that tree in the early 1980s and it was hard to tell it had been done, reports from before and during the felling confirm that the Trust was actively promoting which is why it remained an integral part of the line that the tree was dangerous and there the setting of the Listed Building for the next 30 years. I saw the tree a few months before it was no option but to fell it. This smokescreen conveniently suppressed the real reason why was felled and my opinion is that it is beyond the tree was felled, which the Trust later any reasonable doubt that it could have been confesses was for visual reasons on its blog pruned again without any significant adverse referred to above. Indeed, the glossy video impact on the visual aesthetics of the setting. prepared before the felling was so misleading Indeed, the available documents indicate that that the Trust removed it from YouTube as was the conclusion of all the tree advisors, which seems to have been ignored by the local soon as it realised the scale of its deception decision-maker. There is credible and relevant had been discovered. Furthermore, the
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documentation submitted to the LPA in the Conservation Area Notification was blatantly misleading in several ways. It implied that the felling was for safety reasons and that the trees were in such ill health that they would “only last another 5–6 years”. Most surprising of all, it only submitted the most favourable parts of the expert advice it had received, deliberately suppressing information that did not support the felling option. Quite simply, if the Trust had truthfully stated that the felling was for landscape reasons, there would have been public uproar, which would have forced a more balanced review. By manipulating the information it provided to the LPA, the press, the public and its Members, the Trust orchestrated the felling of the tree through a web of deceit. It is now backtracking after the event when no amount of apologising will bring the tree back; it’s a fait accompli, which takes all the parties as fools to be spun whatever line the National Trust thinks will best suit its purpose.
matter. It is an organisation that should be setting the standard for others to follow, not struggling to pull itself out of the gutter. High standards of ethical performance are what the Trust promotes on its national website, and that is what its Members and the public reasonably expect from an organisation entrusted with some of Britain’s most valuable heritage assets.
“the (National) Trust has fallen far short of any reasonable set of expectations of ethical and professional behaviour”
·
Moral, ethical and professional responsibilities of Local Planning Authorities:
Although the LPA that dealt with the Conservation Area Notification clearly fell victim to the misleading and technically incorrect information in the submission, there still remain some awkward questions to be answered. Why was a BS 5837 category A tree with tens of thousands of viewers a year not deemed suitable for a TPO? Why was the direct reference to the tree in the formal Conservation Area description seemingly not considered? Why were the technically ·Moral, ethical and professional incorrect references to poor tree health, safety responsibilities of The National Trust: and the ability of the species to respond to The National Trust is quite rightly a respected pruning made by the National Trust not national institution, doing vast amounts of challenged? Why was the obviously selective great work around the country. Indeed, my nature of the submitted reports not picked wife is a longstanding member and I have up? From the outside, I do not know the publicly supported its work as an author and answers, but as a member of the public I do presenter wherever I can (see http:// know that LPAs are effectively the guardians www.hortweek.com/news/1176245/according- of trees in conservation areas on behalf of the barrell-act-support-conservation/). However, local and national community. Indeed, a the Trust has fallen far short of any primary intended purpose of the conservation reasonable set of expectations of ethical and area legislation is to prevent trees that professional behaviour in this particular (Continued on page 14)
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officer who used to be a contractor in his early career. He recalls working on this tree himself contribute to the protected character from and having afternoon tea with his crew and being felled without good reason. This tree Henry Bankes, the National Trust’s biggest ever was a specifically noted part of that protected benefactor, on the Mansion terrace with the character and yet that safeguard did not work. tree in full view in the late 1970s. Of course, it For a tree of such national importance to have is unknown whether Mr Bankes would have slipped through the net is a matter of serious approved of what has happened, but a more concern. Something went badly wrong here; it pertinent consideration for the National Trust is a reasonable expectation that the may be whether future potential benefactors conservation area legislation should protect will feel quite so inclined to trust an trees of obvious heritage importance and we organisation that seems to be displaying should all be working towards making that a blatant double standards when it comes to our strong reality rather than a feeble aspiration. environmental heritage.
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· Will the National Trust get away with this behaviour?
Of more urgent concern for the National Trust might be that I am booked to do keynote speeches at the ISA Ontario Chapter In a word, ‘No’. It is reasonable to give the Conference in February and the ISA European Trust sufficient time to respond to my letter, with an expectation that it will be positive, i.e. Conference in Turin in May. I have papers in for an international conference on urban trees following internal investigation, there will be in Sweden in June and the AA Conference in an admission of the mistake and a tangible commitment to ensuring that similar errors of London in September. Finishing off this year judgement will not occur in the future. If that and into 2015, I will be embarking on a series happens, then we will be able to move this of tree management workshops to China, Hong forward positively and promote the National Kong, Australia and New Zealand. Top of my Trust as a responsible natural heritage asset agenda for all of these events will be the loss of manager. However, if the response is negative, The Duke of Wellington Cedar. It remains to be then the campaign will move onto the next seen whether I will be portraying the National phase, which will have a focus on drawing Trust as an intelligent, progressive and together professional, public, NT membership responsible manager, setting the standard for heritage tree conservation (my preference), or and political condemnation to see if change as the dumb villain without sufficient can be forced in the absence of it being leadership qualities and vision to effectively volunteered. Whether that will be successful manage hostile public opinion; a lumbering remains to be seen, but a growing body of leviathan, out of control and out of touch with opinion supporting change will be hard to the membership that supports it. ignore. Of course, the National Trust could weather the storm by simply ignoring what In closing, I wish to thank everyone who has happened, but it is hard to see how it supported this protest, which has recorded a could remain unharmed through such resounding vote of disapproval at how the inaction. National Trust have managed this issue. I will be providing regular updates on further Closing reflections developments on my Facebook page at https:// It is obvious that there is something intuitively www.facebook.com/pages/Heritage-Treewrong with the felling of this tree, a point that Management/573985506028429. was recently put into an interesting perspective by a call I received from a serving senior tree
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The ignominious end for one of Britain’s most important heritage trees; a wheelbarrow full of foliage, a bin of offcuts as trinkets and a request for the public to donate to the cause! Perhaps a time to reflect on what Henry Bankes, the biggest ever benefactor to The National Trust, would have thought about such an end to this living link between him and his ancestors, who experienced and enjoyed its presence as they grew up and lived in the family home.
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I
ntroducing Treezilla; the monster map of trees.
Treezilla is an exciting new Open University led citizen science project calling all local authorities and citizen foresters to upload data about the trees in their area. Together with Forest Research and Treeconomics, Treezilla has the ambitious goal of mapping every tree in Britain. The project presents exciting opportunities for communities, tree officers, academics, urban foresters, students and NGO’s. We are also investigating the possibilities of ground truthing aerial surveys of tree canopies. We know roughly how many trees there are in the forests, woodlands, and around the countryside, but nobody really knows how many trees there are in urban areas. This is one of the questions that we want to answer. To this end we plan to work with local authorities so that we can input their data into the Treezilla system. This has already started to happen. Secondly, we want citizen scientists to fill in any missing details. Mapping every tree in Britain is the ultimate objective, but it is also a mammoth undertaking. Essentially, we want to map every tree that we possibly can. Treezilla is a database with the potential to represent both the legacy and future of Britain's trees. Its creators are confident that information provided by users will enable scientists to conduct new investigations into issues such as tree disease, the extent to which trees contribute to the ecosystem, and how climate change affects tree growth and health. Treezilla also assesses the monetary value that trees provide, by capturing (Continued on page 17)
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carbon dioxide, reducing flood risk, reducing energy use by buildings and improving air quality in cities. The figures produced by Treezilla are based on a generalized version of the i-tree method and as such they are not as accurate as the full survey that measures all the environmental conditions and tree growth parameters. However the Treezilla figures are freely available immediately and the algorithms may be improved as results from more full i-tree surveys are conducted in small areas of UK cities. One of the issues when encouraging the general public to be involved in a project such as this is how to ensure accurate identification. Mike Dodd has recently put together a set of ID resources such as http://amanitaphotolibrary.co.uk/Tree_guide.pdf and http://amanita-photolibrary.co.uk/Street_park_trees/ These compliment identification books and are suitable for the general public who may just want to browse through pictures when trying to match their local trees. When the public add trees to Treezilla it is suggested that they also add several photos of the tree showing individual leaves, the whole tree and any other important aspects. The community of users on Treezilla can then help the user to come to the correct ID. A preliminary analysis of the Treezilla data so far suggests that there are over 170 taxa that are represented by 10 or more individual trees. This shows that our cities hold a significant amount of tree biodiversity, within this diversity over half the top 30 taxa are native species. For more information and to take part visit www.Treezilla.org or email contact@treezilla.org Apple and android apps are available.
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SMAcks of a great day out! For me, one of the absolute essentials when attending the ISA annual international conference is to make it to the Society of Municipal Arborists (SMA) day on the Wednesday. It has been a constant source of idea’s and drive for me and part of that is meeting Municipal Arborists from around the world and hearing how they deal with the same old problems we all endure when managing the interface between people and trees!
Peter Simon and Jim Urban address the tour from their downtown vantage point
I’ve only missed one SMA tour in the last few years (Chicago) and that was because it was fully booked up which certainly shows that I am not the only one who feels this way. This year however was a slight departure from the convention in as much as the tour was all day and not just part of the day and the reason? We were in Toronto, the land of the Urban Forest Programme and a whole day was never going to be enough to sample the extent of the work the city Foresters do here, but it was a pretty good window into their work none the less. The first half of the tour was led by Peter Simon, the Landscape Architect responsible for the two main projects we were looking at and none other than Jim Urban, who is always worth the ticket money whenever he speaks. Two coaches set off from the convention centre full of “Muni’s” and we were introduced to the programme for the day by Pete and Jim and
Not so good! The City of Toronto’s tree nursery was a contrast to the very high standards encountered elsewhere.
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were then unloaded in the downtown Toronto streets to look at some of the issues surrounding the establishment of city sidewalk trees and the innovations employed by the City to ease the progress of the tree into maturity. We looked at various examples or rain gardens and detention pits where storm water is intercepted through small “gutters” set at the edge of the footways and the water runs into shrub beds and the tree pits. As you can see from the photo some errors were made in the size of the grates and many block up quickly with rubbish (in this case cigarette butts) but by and large they function well. The group saw examples of flexible paving solutions where larger trees had been retained (See pic on pg.15) and various historical issues of small containers around large trees were discussed with some enthusiasm! After a hearty impromptu boxed lunch hastily re-arranged due to the torrential rain we set off for the lakeside development known as “Sugar Beach” to the east of the City minus one Jim Urban who had another speaking date to get to. I think if I were to sum this project up from a European perspective it would – how much!?! I have, like many tree managers accepted the axiom that it is better to plant a £100 tree in a £200 hole rather than a £200 tree in a £100 hole. However a £50 tree in a £50,000 hole was quite a cultural shock! If you want to take a look at the lakeside project we visited in the afternoon session there is some background video and info from 2010 on the link on the next page, just click on the photo:
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Some of the tour delegates hearing about the problems encountered.
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http://www.blogto.com/city/2010/08/will_silva_cells_help_improve_torontos_urban_forest/
There is no doubt at all that Toronto has achieved some of the highest extension growth rates I have ever seen in a city tree via the incredible engineering that had gone into the project; 4 to 6 feet in a season on hybrid red maples is high even for this species – but I can’t help feeling that it was just too high and inevitable future failures were discussed, albeit briefly, and from an Arborist’s perspective, just because you can do something doesn’t mean you necessarily should! However, establishing an avenue along the exposed lakeside to such a degree in three years is a remarkable achievement. The tour finished with a trip to the city nursery (pictured). There the Toronto Urban Forestry division talked to us about the production methods and selection of trees and we looked some of the trees left over from the previous planting season that were being kept over in the holding areas pictured. This too was the subject of some discussion. So, let’s see what the Milwaukee municipals can do to top this at the 2014 conference! Ian McDermott
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The large area of flexi-paving around the City’s bigger trees was an topic of interest to all the delegates..
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Presenting Parrotia persica ‘Vanessa’ The Society of Municipal Arborists 2014 Urban Tree of the Year Manager of Parks for Surrey, British Columbia Owen Croy wrote the Tree of Merit column in the SMA’s magazine “City Trees” about Parrotia persica ‘Vanessa’ just last spring. He is gratified that this tree sailed on to take the big prize, SMA Urban Tree of the Year. Parrotia persica is most often called simply parrotia or Persian ironwood. Here’s an excerpt of Croy’s column about ‘Vanessa’ parrotia.
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The Persian ironwood tree is native to the lower mountain slopes of northern Iran, and it has been planted widely in cities across Europe and North America for many years. It has great colour in the spring, with glossy, green, red-tipped leaves that later turn a darker green through the summer. Autumn colour is spectacular, often with leaves of multiple colours on the tree at the same time: orange, purple, yellow and green. When older, this tree has flaky grey bark that is very attractive, giving it year-round appeal. The cultivar ‘Vanessa’ emerged from Europe in the 1970s and is now widely cultivated in North American nurseries. ‘Vanessa’ is upright, almost columnar, with branches that arch gracefully outward towards the tip. It is a slow-growing small tree, reaching a height of about 11 metres (36 feet) at maturity. Perhaps because of its slow growth rate, it seems that much of the available nursery stock is slightly smaller than would be typical for street tree planting programs. It is hardy in USDA zones 4-8.
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A young ‘Vanessa’ on the streets of Surrey, BC • Photo by Owen Croy
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Parrotia buds • Photo by Steve Cothrel
This
tree has proven
in our setting to be incredibly
resilient to drought stress and pests. With its versatility, hardiness, interesting bark, unique growth form, and spectacular fall colour, what more could you ask for in a city tree? —Lanny Englund, Manager of Urban Forestry in Coquitlam, British Columbia
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In Surrey, ‘Vanessa’ is being planted as a street tree where there are overhead lines in close proximity to the planting strips. Staff report that it responds extremely well to clearance pruning and has fewer crossing branches than either the straight species or the cultivar ‘Ruby Vase’. Branch unions tend to be very strong, and ‘Vanessa’ doesn’t seem to develop the levels of included bark that we have observed in other species of columnar trees. We have also noted that in well-irrigated soils, young ‘Vanessa’ specimens don’t seem to develop fall colour that is as vibrant as the straight species, but only time will tell if this trait continues as the trees mature. Surrey Tree and Landscape Manager Steve Whitton adds that parrotia planted in the City’s centre about 10 years ago in structural soil (in a trench one metre deep by one metre wide) have grown very well. Whitton says, “They have more than tripled in size. This was a great success story for both structural soil and parrotia.” Here are some additional testimonials to the value of Persian ironwood, and especially of ‘Vanessa’, to our city streets.
Parrotia autumn foliage • Photo by Steve Cothrel
We began using Parrotia
only within the past
few years, and I’ve been delighted so far. We have used ‘Vanessa’ as a street tree in several residential and commercial locations. Its transplantability, form, foliage, and fall colour are all appealing features. I have also watched with interest a pair of 152-mm calliper street trees planted some years ago by a resident. The trees withstood some significant abuse when the stately old home was renovated, then burned, and was then renovated again. Three years of construction traffic and abuse, and the trees are thriving! I expect that we’ll be planting more Parrotia persica in Upper Arlington for good reasons. —Steve Cothrel, Superintendent of Parks and Forestry, Parks and Recreation Department, Upper Arlington, Ohio
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I love it;
it’s not bothered by drought nor long wet spells. No sign of pests. Just
a neat, well-behaved little tree! I have had a Parrotia ‘Vanessa’ growing in my front yard for about 15 years. I picked it up at a local plant sale in a 25-litre pot. It’s now about 5.5 m tall and just beautiful. It provides reliable yellow/red autumn colour in an area not known for autumn colour. It is still tightly vertical with some very nice muscular trunks which clearly identify why it’s also called Persian ironwood. —Steve Shurtz, Urban Forestry & Landscape Manager at City/Parish of Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Congratulations to Persian parrotia! Parrotia persica has many desirable characteristics that make it a great street tree here in Burlington, Vermont. The tree grows in a variety of soil textures and types. It has succeeded in tough sites where crab-apples failed to establish. It is also tolerant to heat, cold, and drought conditions. In Burlington, newly planted parrotia are watered for the first two growing seasons. Parrotia persica are planted beneath utility lines because of their slow and low growth. We have not had any problems with fungal or insect pests yet. In addition to the great physical and biological characteristics, Persian parrotia is visually appealing. It displays beech-like bark when young, tiny pinkish-red flowers in spring, purple leaves at bud burst that change to a waxy deep green all summer, and bright orange to red colour through the fall. Parrotia is a wonderful species to add to any urban or ornamental landscape. —Brian Sullivan, Municipal Specialist, Burlington, Vermont Department of Parks and Recreation
We planted ‘Vanessa’ parrotia as a street tree in 4 x 8 feet (app. 1.2 x 2.4 m) cut-outs using tree grates during December of 2011 (we can plant trees all winter long due to our mild climate here in Renton, Washington). Other than some poor stock we received from a nursery (which they replaced immediately for free), we have had 100% survival to date. They received some supplemental watering between June and September (our driest season) at the rate of once per two weeks and they showed little or no stress. We also planted one at a different site that unlike the others, did not receive supplemental watering, and even this tree has survived nicely. ‘Vanessa’ is an upright, columnar growing tree that fits nicely in our downtown area with zero building setbacks and along the curb-line. I plan on using more parrotia in the future based upon this trial planting and appreciate their tolerance for dry, hot urban conditions. —Terry Flatley, Certified Arborist - Municipal Specialist, Urban Forestry and Natural Resources Manager, Renton Washington
An axe to grind, Pg.28
Young ‘Vanessa’ parrotia trees looking sharp in Renton, Washington, the spring following planting. Photo by Terry Flatley
Some of the first trees
planted during
the kick-off of TreeVitalize Pittsburgh in April of 2008 were parrotia. The 51-mm calliper trees were 2.4-2.7 m tall and planted in 9 x 3 m tree pits. As of November 2013, those trees are now 127-mm calliper (102-mm DBH) and 5.2 m tall. Residents love the beautiful fall colour and were very concerned about the tree’s health when the bark began to peel. After we explained how the bark will continue to exfoliate and change colours, they are now excited for the bark to mature. One tree was defoliated in late summer by a gas leak and recovered very well the next year. We’ve observed that parrotia seems to have a low to moderate salt tolerance. Prune only in full leaf, as pruning in autumn/winter has caused extensive bleeding followed by mould, much worse than we have seen on any maple. Parrotia stands up very well to vandalism as the wood is strong and doesn’t break or tear easily. —Matthew Pittsburgh
Erb,
Director
of
Urban
Forestry,
Tree
We are grateful to the Society of Municipal Arborist’s for the use of their article. The MTOA enjoys a Memorandum, of Understanding with our sister organization in North America and you can visit their website by clicking here or visit www.urbanforestry.com
An axe to grind, Pg.29
Tree Strategy Or Street Tragedy?
An axe to grind, Pg.30
The Beefsteak fungus
feared, loved, misunderstood. I’ve hunted many a mushroom over the years, but recently I’ve come to realise that F. hepatica is by far the overarching king of arboricultural fungi. However, there does seem to be some confusion over the degree of hazard that trees found with Fistulina should be afforded. As such I would like to allay some of these concerns, and stand up for this, the most glorious of tree fungi. Fistulina is an easy fungus to identify and after only a cursory inspection is rarely mistaken for anything else. When young, the entire fruiting body quite literally resembles supple flesh. The surface layer or ‘skin’ is around 3mm thick, and can be peeled off to reveal a bloody, sinuous layer underneath. Young specimens will feel soft but firm and heavy, like a tender sirloin steak and will ‘bleed’ when cut. One crucial identification feature to observe is the pore surface underneath, which quickly bruises red when touched. When broken, the spore tubes in typical polypore fungi will remain joined together like a sponge. The tubes of Fistulina however will separate like the bristles of a brush and it is this feature that now places it not with the Polypores, but with the Agarics.
An axe to grind, Pg.31
It is common knowledge that Fistulina causes cubical brown-rot in host trees. However, the actual rate of wood decay is much slower than people often realise. During the early stages of colonisation, Fistulina survives mainly on the tannins present in the heartwood of the host, which gives rise to the ‘brown oak’, much prized by carpenters. The breakdown of cellulose only occurs at a much later stage of decay, and it may be many years before an infected tree may present a hazard. The ability to consume tannin is rare and in the majority of tree fungi this substance actually inhibits growth. Once the tannins have been removed, secondary decay fungi such as Grifola frondosa are free to then colonise and degrade the wood. It is this feisty little clucker that we should be wary of, much more so than our humble hero, the honourable beefsteak. So the moral of this story? Well, if all you’ve got to go on is a plucky beefsteak fungus, there may be much less cause for alarm than many people think. Many trees have been known to survive quite happily for years with a Fistulina infection. As Fistulina is found mainly on our heavily lignified oaks and sweet chestnuts, if decay is slow enough the host may survive almost indefinitely, with little loss of tensile strength. So essentially, dig a little further and trust in the beefsteak; things may not be as bad as they first seemed.
So what are my future management recommendations? Eat the beefsteak, it’s delightful. It’s also a good source of vitamin C and is one of the few fungi which are considered safe to be eaten raw. If you’re lucky you can sometimes find these for sale in French markets, and they sell for quite respectable money. I’ve heard a few good recipes, including sautéing in white wine and deep-frying in bread crumbs, but for me the best choice is to lightly fry it with a little pepper and fresh garlic if you’re feeling fruity. Serve with some winter veg, a pint of pale ale and settle down to watch Time Team. Oh beefsteak I salute you, you strange and juicy beast. I shall return in autumn, to once again nibble your intriguing, supple and enchanting flesh.
Chris Parker.
All images used with permission from the fair and judicious Leo Hawkes.
Fistulina hepatica
An axe to grind, Pg.32
Urban Tree Health Urban Tree Health: A Practical and Precise Estimation Method by Jerry Bond was published in 2012 by Urban Forest Analytics, LCC. It is part of a moderately technical Visual Identification Series that relies on highquality photographs with concise and clear captions. The book features scores of colour photographs and diagrams that clearly illustrate the premise of the author, that there is a need for an urban tree health estimation methodology that is both practical and precise. The author gradually builds a strong case for this necessity. Dr. Bond begins with an overview of the new method and follows with a section that provides context by defining terminology and establishing scope. Five parameters: ratio, opacity, vitality, growth, and quality are introduced and together they make up the core of the urban tree health method.
You can purchase this book as an MTOA member for the discounted price of £25 from the MTOA office or click here to buy online.
Much of the book is devoted to observation and interpretation details relating to the five parameters. The author makes thoughtful points and raises many questions for the arboricultural community which might prove very helpful in creating an industry standard for tree health estimation.
When the author explains proxy variables and the formula for Net Primary Production, he moves a little beyond “moderately technical” in my opinion. I would instead characterize the book as technical, but made surprisingly accessible by the logical way it is presented and the excellent photographs and captions. I had the pleasure of trying out the urban tree health estimation method with Dr. Bond and a large contingent from the New York ReLeaf Conference in Buffalo, NY in July, 2012. I found the method practical because the parameters were easily estimated and recorded. It was precise in that we usually arrived at the same conclusions. The group of participants in the workshop had varying levels of experience. Included were students, shade tree committee members, professional arborists, and others—and all appeared to be successfully employing the method.
Dr. Jerry Bond leads a workshop at the New York ReLeaf Conference in Buffalo in 2012.
In my opinion, a good use for this method is documenting and reporting tree health over time, as in a preservation plan or following tree stress caused by site development activities. Other uses for the urban tree health estimation method proposed in the book include research, response to treatment, valuation of individual trees, and evaluation of tree populations. I agree this is a useful tool and highly recommend the book to arborists and researchers. Educators, volunteers, and others interested in tree health will also find this book comprehensible and useful.
Urban Tree Health Estimator Version 1.0 is an accompanying data collection app that runs on free software for Android (including Kindle) devices. —Andy Hillman, SMA Past President
An axe to grind, Pg.33
You probably don't remember this? This was the first ever “Axe”. Oddly this was assembled and edited by the now new Editor, Ian McDermott, so it is a case of if you stand still long enough it will all come past again. It was about 4 pages long and was an eclectic assembly of arb related articles. The membership of MTOA was then around 40 Midlands based Tree Officers, we have come a long way. Over the next few weeks we will be posting up on-line as many of the editions of the Axe as we can but especially the recent editions from Portia Howe who set a very high benchmark indeed. We will keep you informed, and please watch for an email. In the meantime, if you have any old electronic copies of the Axe buried on your PC then by all means please send them along to the Editor as we are missing quite a few from over the years. On the left is the cover of the 2nd edition (sorry for the picture quality) and featured a rather brutally pruned Horse chestnut that used to stand in Himley Hall, Dudley. Some things don’t seem to change. Do you have any pictures you want to share, or better still and entire article then do not be shy, the MTOA needs your input.
The MTOA needs you.
An axe to grind, Pg.34
An axe to grind, Pg.35
And finally. I hope you have enjoyed this edition of the Axe and I would welcome any and all comments. It will, as most things do evolve and come to have a life of its own but it will not be your magazine if you don’t contribute. So, if you have an opinion, have managed to achieve something worth shouting about (prosecutions, tree plantings, special surfaces etc.) then please do not hesitate to contact me with the info. Please also circulate the link to the online versions to any and all of your colleagues and “spread the word” of MTOA far and wide. A unified voice for the municipal arborist should be the goal, and we can get there with the weight of representation through your help. I hope it stops raining soon and that your tree programme realises it ambitions! Until next time.
Mac
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An axe to grind, Pg.36