September 29, 2004
Purdue urban foresters provide data for tree management plans
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Businesses conduct periodic inventories to establish a record of how much stock they have on hand and what they need to replace. A Purdue Department of Natural Resources Urban Forestry Extension program helps Indiana cities and towns find out the same information about trees that are located in municipal rights of way.
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Street tree inventories compile information that helps city planners maintain diversity in tree species, determine health conditions and identify hazards to people, buildings and utility lines.
"Diversity is important so that the urban landscape won't be completely decimated by a pest invasion or disease," said Rita McKenzie, Purdue Extension urban forester. "A street tree inventory establishes a baseline. You have to know what you have before you can manage it."
Purdue's urban forestry program annually conducts inventories for communities throughout Indiana. Teams of students led by faculty advisers assess the trees, enter information into a database, and then present a workshop on proper tree care and selection, along with a recommendation on where to plant new trees. Funding is available through matching grants from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources' urban forestry program. Tree inventories have been conducted for Crawfordsville, Crown Point, Fowler, Mitchell, Rochester, Terre Haute and Indianapolis' historic Crown Hill Cemetery.
A Purdue team currently is working on a street tree inventory in West Lafayette. Forestry and Natural Resources students Kasey Krouse and Henry Schmitt have been in the field since July to record trees' vital statistics and pinpoint the location of each tree with global positioning satellite coordinates.
"I'm really good at identifying trees now," said Schmitt, a senior natural resources major from Covington, Ind.
In addition to recognizing different trees, the students have learned to spot health problems and potential hazards. "We look for situations where a tree is ripping apart sidewalks or growing into power lines," said Krouse, a junior forestry major from Fort Wayne, Ind.
It's an ambitious project. The two will have canvassed the equivalent of 144 miles by the time the computerized report is delivered to the city's Office of Economic Development and Planning.
"Our goal is to use the information to increase the diversity of trees," said Beverly Shaw, West Lafayette's greenspace administrator. "More than 80 percent of the trees on Sagamore Parkway (U.S. 52) are ash trees, which likely will be threatened by the emerald ash borer. We could have an area completely deforested by ash borers. We don't know what else we have that may be problematic."
Currently, the emerald ash borer has been found in only two northern Indiana counties.
The data collected also will identify trees that pose a variety of risks.
"We're always working on pruning and pedestrian clearance," Shaw said. "The inventory will call attention to those trees and give us a tool to prioritize maintenance and health problems. You're really shooting in the dark if you don't have a street tree inventory. You can guess and have a general feel for things, but you don't know for sure."
In this era of escalating budget cuts, a street tree inventory can provide the basis for financial analysis that can justify the costs and benefits of both maintaining existing trees and planting new ones, McKenzie said.
"Knowing what you have and what the benefits are is important before you go in front of the city council and ask for funding for tree maintenance or more trees," she said. "It's more cost-effective for cities to plant trees than to cut them down."
McKenzie cites reduced cooling costs, storm sewer runoff and levels of carbon dioxide and other air pollutants among the many benefits of trees.
In addition to providing a service to Indiana communities, the inventories expose students to experiential learning, including conducting fieldwork, understanding city ordinances and interacting with the public.
"I learned to deal with people in the real world outside of the Purdue classroom," Schmitt said.
Both Schmitt and Krouse had encounters with homeowners who were curious about what they were doing. "I met a lot of different people around the city," Krouse said. "I even received a book from one couple who called me 'West Lafayette's Johnny Appleseed.'"
Writer: Olivia Maddox, (765) 496-3207, maddoxol@purdue.edu
Sources: Rita McKenzie, (765) 494-3625, mckenzie@purdue.edu
Henry Schmitt, hschmitt@purdue.edu
Kasey Krouse, kkrouse@purdue.edu
Beverly Shaw, (765) 775-5160, bshaw@city.west-lafayette.in.us
Ag Communications: (765) 494-2722; Beth Forbes, forbes@purdue.edu
Agriculture News Page
Related Web sites:
Urban Forestry Program
Purdue Extension Emerald Ash Borer Information
Indiana Department of Natural Resources Community and Urban Forestry
Indiana Department of Natural Resources Urban Forest Conservation Grants
City of West Lafayette Tree Care
PHOTO CAPTION:
Purdue forestry and natural resources students Kasey Krouse, at left, and Henry Schmitt record data about trees located on city rights of way in West Lafayette, Ind. Krouse, of Fort Wayne, Ind., and Schmitt, of Covington, Ind., are part of a Purdue urban forestry team that is conducting a street tree inventory for the city. The information collected helps Indiana communities plan tree management programs that maintain the health and diversity of urban trees. (Purdue Agricultural Communications photo/Mike Kerper)
A publication-quality photo is available at http://news.uns.purdue.edu/images/+2004/mckenzie-inventory.jpg
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