Tree canopies
Kingston: Area embarks on tree project
Kingston Whig-Standard / 11 November 2011
A new climate change project taking root at a local conservation area may help determine whether trees from warmer climates can survive, and thrive, here.
A five-acre plot of hardwood trees normally found at latitudes south of Kingston will be planted at Lemoine Point Conservation Area in the spring to see if they can acclimatize.
"We expect that climate change will have a significant effect on our forests, including their ability to adapt genetically," reads the project's background material found on the Cataraqui Region Conversation Authority's website.
"Forests could suffer due to temperature and weather extremes and be unable to regenerate themselves locally or to migrate by natural means of wind, water and animals."
Some of the trees' seedlings will originate from areas such as Tennessee and Pennsylvania. Among the species being planted will be Bur Oak, a native oak species that is suitable for clay soils such as those found in this area.
A buffer of Norway spruce will also be planted.
REAL Urban Tree Workshop
Get a Seedling, Plant a Tree, Learn about Native Trees at Free Workshop
As part of its RAIN program, The Rideau Environmental Action League is holding a workshop on The Benefits of Urban Trees and Planting and Transplanting Young Trees.
WHAT: REAL Tree Workshop
WHEN: Saturday, September 24, 10:30 a.m. - noon
WHERE: REAL site at The REAL Deal Reuse Store, 85 William St. West, Smiths Falls, opposite the Railway Museum
All participants will leave with one or two free tree seedlings they can go home and plant.
Our urban trees are being challenged by such things as insect infestations, drought, road salt, air pollution and extreme climate events – all exacerbated by climate change.
The Benefits of Urban Trees
Maryland Department of Natural Resources Forest Service
. Introduction
. Trees reduce air pollution
. Trees fight the atmospheric greenhouse effect
. Trees conserve water and reduce soil erosion
. Trees save energy
. Trees modify local climate
. Trees increase economic stability
. Trees reduce noise pollution and create wildlife and plant diversity
. Helping trees and your urban forest
BCI Enviro Club planting seeds of change for the future
Recorder and Times / Steve Pettibone / 21 April 2011
As part of the annual tree planting organized by students in the Enviro Club at the local high school, over 3,000 trees are set to be planted in Maynard on April 27 by a crew of more than 50 students, staff and support staff.
The club, which meets every Tuesday at lunch hour in the school, has planted thousands of trees locally over the past several years, including 7,800 in the Algonquin area in 2009, and approximately 4,000 last year in Maynard.
Sponsored by the Leeds-Grenville Land Stewardship Council, which is paying the busing costs for students to travel to the site on County Road 26 in Maynard, the planting offers students in the Enviro Club another way to add to a long list of things they are doing to preserve the environment.
Ontario: Group launches urban tree renewal program
Globe and Mail / Omair Quadri / 05 April 2011
Urban forest renewal is an idea that's time has come, according to the executive director of the Local Enhancement and Appreciation of Forests.
"Trees make our cities liveable. They make our neighbourhoods beautiful, and we need to start investing in trees," Janet McKay said.
LEAF, along with five other groups across the province, launched the Urban Forest Stewardship Network at Trinity Bellwoods Park Tuesday. UFSN is a program aimed at promoting "an exchange of ideas, resources and contacts for those community groups and individuals in Ontario interested in improving their local urban forest," Ms. McKay said. The program is financially supported by Ontario Power Generation's biodiversity management program.
Large price tags outlining the ecological service provided by trees were fastened to more than a dozen trees surrounding the park. According to the environmental group, a mature tree provides $162,000 in ecological goods and services over a fifty-year lifespan, and is the only infrastructure that appreciates in value.
How the emerald ash borer survives Canadian winters
The Sault Star / Frank Dobrovnik / 04 March 2011
The emerald ash borer was first detected in North America nine years ago, in Windsor and across the border in Detroit. It was believed to have been accidentally introduced on imported wood packaging or crating material.
It has killed millions of ash trees from Windsor to Ottawa. Sault Ste. Marie is the sole Northern Ontario city with an outbreak, although it's not as pronounced here.
That may be partly due to the fact the ash population is only about 5%, compared with up to one quarter in cities such as Ottawa and 40% in Windsor, where there are hardly any ash left. But more significant is our colder winters, Lyons said.
Money DOES Grow on Trees!
Trees in urban areas provide a number of important benefits. They help to clean the air, curb stormwater runoff, raise property values, sequester carbon, and reduce energy costs.
National Tree Benefit Calculator
Enter information about a street-side tree and learn about the benefits it provides. Street-side trees are typically located in front yards, medians, parkways, planting strips or other common planting areas adjacent to streets.
Hat tip to Green Communities Canada!
