It’s spring, but many street trees look stressed and sick. Heat and insect attack are arriving early. But our cities are also steadily losing canopy cover.
New research reveals how trees respond to extreme heat. Most trees lose more water than models predict. Some species cope better than others. Access to water will be critical for the hot summer ahead.
Timothy Welch, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
New Zealand’s urban green space has dwindled over the past six decades. The Commissioner for the Environment has issued a warning and a challenge – get greener before climate change gets meaner.
Urban plantings are part of the solution to living in warmer cities, but most tree and shrub species in the world’s cities will struggle too. The impacts on liveability could be huge.
Seen from above, parts of our cities now have very little green space, and we’re losing the green corridors that enable wildlife to move between the remaining urban habitats.
Extreme heat waves are putting lives in danger, with some of the hottest urban neighborhoods 10 degrees hotter or more than their wealthier neighbors. Often, these are communities of color.
Two urban policy experts explain why taking down highways that have isolated low-income and minority neighborhoods for decades is an important part of the pending infrastructure bill.
Biological control strategies curb pests using other species that attack the invader. A biologist explains why it can take more than a decade to develop an effective biological control program.
As a tree scientist who works with urban trees, I can assure you some large, old trees are well worth leaving alone, even you find them annoying sometimes.
Avenues of Honour were planted to remind us of the sacrifice and suffering of our servicemen and women. But as the years wore on, many declined or disappeared.
Sleep might be a key factor in the link between greener neighbourhoods and better health. A new study shows living in an area with more tree canopy improves people’s odds of getting enough sleep.
Inner Melbourne alone has lost 2,000 street trees to major developments within a decade. Losing tree cover makes it even more difficult for our cities to cope with an increasingly tough climate.
City trees are often short-lived and many others get cut down in their prime. Turning them into mulch both wastes timber and releases stored carbon. A wood rescue program creates a more fitting legacy.