Proper Tree Research Articles

Trends in Tree Species Selection for Urban Street Planting: A Thematic Review

In major cities, street tree failures pose ongoing challenges related to user safety, tree management, and maintenance. This study evaluates trends in urban street tree selection by analysing 45 articles from 2019 to 2024 using keywords such as “street,” “tree species,” and “selection.” The thematic analysis identifies five key themes: species diversity, ecosystem services, climate adaptability, public perception, and management challenges. Findings highlight the need for a multifaceted approach, recommending criteria to reduce conflicts and ensure proper tree placement. The proposed framework aims to enhance urban tree resilience and coexistence with humans by emphasising genetic diversity and ecological benefits. Keywords: Street tree, species selection, urban forestry, thematic review

Survival and Growth Performance of Calophyllum inophyllum L. Seedlings in Peat Soil and at Different Levels of Groundwater

Selecting proper tree species for revegetation is important for restoring tropical peatland. Tamanu (Calophyllum inophyllum L.) has been suggested one of the promising native species in Indonesia for the revegetation of tropical peatland; however, there is a lack of understanding of its growth in peat soil with different groundwater levels. We investigated the survival rate, plant height, number of leaves, root collar diameter, and dry biomass of tamanu seedlings grown in peat soil with different groundwater levels using a randomized block design in a water tank. The study involved five groundwater level treatments and 12 tree-level replicates each: M0 (non-groundwater level, control); M1 (−15 cm below the soil surface); M2 (−10 cm); M3 (−5 cm); and M4 (0 cm, soil surface level). The results showed that all tamanu seedlings survived in every treatment. However, their plant height, number of leaves, and root collar diameter growth were significantly inhibited in the highest groundwater level condition (M4, 0 cm) at 81 days after sowing, while their growth in −15 cm of groundwater level (M1) was as good as the growth in the fully drained conditions in M0 (control). This result indicates that the groundwater level should not be higher than −15 cm for the growth of tamanu. Considering that peatlands in Indonesia are assessed to be degraded when the groundwater level is lower than −40 cm, this study suggests that maintaining groundwater levels between −40 cm and −15 cm in peatland is the best condition for rapid growth of early tamanu seedlings while protecting peatlands. Further studies are needed to extend the range of water levels and water treatment duration.

A Tree-Prone Community: Residential and Street Tree Planting and Care in the Neotropical City of Xalapa, Mexico

Abstract Background Urban trees are the most conspicuous elements of greenery in cities, providing goods and services that contribute to people’s well-being. However, proper tree care and management are necessary for their survival, particularly for street and residential trees. Methods Through a survey, our objectives were to identify and quantify the presence of residential and street trees and the contribution of residents in tree planting and care in the city of Xalapa, Mexico. We assessed the dwelling characteristics that facilitate the presence, planting, and care of residential and street trees in the city (socioeconomic level, homeownership, time of inhabitance, and location of dwellings) via Generalized Linear Models. Results In Xalapa, the presence of residential trees was higher than that of street trees; people contributed significantly to the planting and care of both residential and street trees; the socioeconomic level and time of inhabitance were positively associated with the presence and planting of street trees; and homeownership was positively associated with residential trees. However, tree care was largely independent of tree planting and dwelling characteristics. Conclusions People’s contributions and commitment to planting and care for residential and street trees are high, with the dwelling characteristics showing as important factors for tree presence and planting, but not for tree care. Recognizing people’s actions and participation in tree planting and care and orienting them towards a positive impact through city planning and management can help to keep Xalapa as a green, functional city that provides quality benefits and services to the urban dwellers.

Litter dynamics of forest ecosystem in an urban and pristine area of West Bengal, India

Aim: A comparative assessment of forest litterfall dynamics was carried out between the Garadaha forest (GF or urban) and the Pratappur forest (PF or pristine), located in Burdwan districts of West Bengal, and the litterfall components were correlated with the environmental factors that govern the dynamics. Methodology: Nets of dimension 1m × 1m were placed below the tress of both forests and litter was collected at regular intervals per month and brought to the laboratory for separation into the categories like leaf litter, woody litter (bark), miscellaneous (mixed) and twig. Two types of litterfall such as specific litterfall and standing litterfall were calculated. Environmental factors such as maximum and minimum temperature, rainfall, relative humidity, wind speed, solar irradiance, and photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) were studied simultaneously followed by correlation and Principal Component Analysis. Results: Pre-monsoon showed the highest total litterfall (specific litterfall and standing litterfall) in both types of forests. The decomposition quotient was higher in the pristine forest than in the urban forest. The correlation between litterfall components and environmental factors showed that solar irradiance was positively correlated with litterfall dynamics. Interpretation: The work emphasizes the forest management of urban areas impacted by industrialization and urbanization. The anthropogenic causes influence the plant growth and litterfall pattern thereby affecting the decomposition process and soil health. The selection of proper tree species should be given priority for social forestry in industrialized zones of India. Key words: Litter decomposition, Seasonal pattern, Solar irradiance, Standing litter, Temperature

Efficient and Generic Algorithms for Quantitative Attack Tree Analysis

Numerous analysis methods for quantitative attack tree analysis have been proposed. These algorithms compute relevant security metrics, i.e. performance indicators that quantify how good the security of a system is; typical metrics being the most likely attack, the cheapest, or the most damaging one. However, existing methods are only geared towards specific metrics or do not work on general attack trees. This paper classifies attack trees in two dimensions: proper trees vs. directed acyclic graphs (i.e. with shared subtrees); and static vs. dynamic gates. For three out of these four classes, we propose novel algorithms that work over a generic attribute domain, encompassing a large number of concrete security metrics defined on the attack tree semantics; dynamic attack trees with directed acyclic graph structure are left as an open problem. We also analyse the computational complexity of our methods.

TREES PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES TO AIR POLLUTION IN TAMAN MARGASATWA RAGUNAN AND UI DEPOK CAMPUS

Air pollution is a common environmental problem. Planting trees can minimize the adverse effects of air pollution. Plants can absorb and accumulate air pollutants through stomata. Biochemical changes in the leaves will appear as a physiological response of plants to air pollution that can be known by calculating the APTI (Air Pollution Tolerance Index) value. This study aimed to analyze the differences in physiological responses of five tree species in Taman Margasatwa Ragunan (TMR) South Jakarta and Universitas Indonesia (UI) Depok Campus as well as to find out the proper tree species planted in areas with high levels of air pollution. The leaves of five species (Hevea brasiliensis, Manilkara kauki, Artocarpus heterophyllus, Ficus septica, and Mangifera indica) were used to examine the effect of air pollution. Biochemical parameters (relative water content, leaf extract pH, total chlorophyll content, and ascorbic acid content) were observed from each species. The value of each parameter was calculated into the APTI equation. H. brasiliensis, F. septica, and M. indica were categorized as moderately tolerant plants, M. kauki were included as intermediate plants, and A. heterophyllus was a sensitive plant to air pollution in both locations. The highest APTI values were observed in M. indica in both locations. Thus, the recommended species planted in a polluted area was M. indica.

Municipal Employees’ Perceptions of Tree Risk and Liability in Alabama

Abstract Research about the broad range of ecological, social, and economic benefits urban forests provide communities trees has expanded significantly and helped provide justification for protecting and enhancing urban forests. However, an empirical understanding of risks and liabilities is limited despite an abundance of risk research in other disciplines. Employing Alabama as a case study, this research examined municipal employees’ perceptions of factors, including legal liability, influencing actions towards urban tree risk mitigation. Qualitative interviews revealed attitudes and practices regarding municipal responsibility towards public tree management. Cities were unlikely to implement risk assessments to provide a foundation for tree maintenance. As a result, there was limited adaptive and integrative governance to handle risk in the community forest. Results are implicated in the broader narrative of community sustainability and resilience, particularly management of complexity, uncertainty, and ambiguity of urban forest risk and benefits. Study Implications: Large-population cities were equipped to address tree maintenance, implement best management practices, and focus on preventative risk management. However, all cities were limited in capacity to conduct comprehensive tree risk assessments and communicate with residents about proper tree selection and care to reduce risk of failure. Whereas this has negative implications for community resilience, a number of small and medium-sized communities demonstrated opportunities to address urban forest health such as harnessing employee champions, local sources of expertise, and encouraging volunteerism. Municipal tree programs should not overlook community assets and culture in the goal to reduce risk while maximizing tree benefits.

Agroforestry and Household Food Security Status among Small-Scale Farmers in Kubo South and Samburu Wards of Kwale County, Kenya

This study investigated the contributions of agroforestry to household food security in Kwale County. The study objectives were to determine the status of agroforestry, the status of household food security, and the relationship between agroforestry and household food security. Descriptive cross-sectional survey research design was applied, with multistage sampling procedure, which comprised of purposive and random sampling for selection of the study sites and respondents from different villages in Kubo south and Samburu wards, Kwale County. The sample size for the study comprised of 270 smallholders and 10 key informants. The study used a combination of instruments, namely, structured questionnaires, focus group discussions, observation, and interview schedules. Descriptive statistics and regression analysis were used to test relationship between agroforestry and household food security. The study found that 14.1 % were food secure, 2.96 % households mildly food insecure, 54.81 % were moderately food insecure and 27.41 % were severely food insecure. Majority of farmers practice agrosilvopastoral system of agroforestry due to the multiplicity of social, economic, and environmental benefits they derive from it. The results further indicated that challenges facing agroforestry farmers include poor access to credit, inadequate extension services, wildlife destruction, pests and diseases, and inadequate markets for agroforestry products. The study concludes that there is high level of food insecurity among smallholder farmers and recommends concerted efforts by county and national governments to intensify the practice of agroforestry, improvement of access to inputs for agroforestry, allocate more land for agroforestry practice, proper tree species selection, adoption of best agroforestry practices based on research, and suitable tree planting arrangements for improved household food security.

Discrete-Time State-Space Construction Method for SSO Analysis of Renewable Power Generation Integrated AC/DC Hybrid System

Construction of the linearized state-space model is the key step of eigenvalue analysis for SSO study of power systems with large-scale renewable power generation (RPG) integrated. This paper proposes a novel method to construct the state matrix of the AC/DC hybrid power system with RPG within the discrete-time domain. The continuous-time state-space model of each AC/DC component as well as RPG units in the power system, is discretized together with their corresponding control. The discretized equation of each component is then represented by an equivalent circuit consisting of parallel historical current and conductance. According to the power system configuration, the discrete-time equivalent circuit of the whole AC/DC hybrid system is established, and the nodal analysis method is applied for the construction of the discrete-time state-space model of the power system. In this way, the state matrix can be acquired much more conveniently than that of continuous-time state-space method, which needs topology analysis to find independent state variables of the network from the proper tree. The proposed method has been applied in the eigenvalue analysis for the SSO study of a case system adapted from the AC/DC hybrid transmission system in northwest China. Eigenvalue results are in high accordance with time-domain simulation results in PSCAD/EMTDC.

Managing and Reforesting Degraded Post-Mining Landscape in Indonesia: A Review

Tropical forests are among the most diverse ecosystems in the world, completed by huge biodiversity. An expansion in natural resource extraction through open-pit mining activities leads to increasing land and tropical forest degradation. Proper science-based practices are needed as an effort to reclaim their function. This paper summarizes the existing practice of coal mining, covering the regulatory aspects and their reclamation obligations, the practices of coal mining from various sites with different land characteristics, and the reclamation efforts of the post-mining landscapes in Indonesia. The regulations issued accommodate the difference between mining land inside the forest area and outside the forest area, especially in the aspect of the permit authority and in evaluating the success rate of reclamation. In coal-mining practices, this paper describes starting from land clearing activities and followed by storing soil layers and overburden materials. In this step, proper handling of potentially acid-forming materials is crucial to prevent acid mine drainage. At the reclamation stage, this paper sequentially presents research results and the field applications in rearranging the overburden and soil materials, controlling acid mine drainage and erosion, and managing the drainage system, settling ponds, and pit lakes. Many efforts to reclaim post-coal-mining lands and their success rate have been reported and highlighted. Several success stories describe that post-coal-mining lands can be returned to forests that provide ecosystem services and goods. A set of science-based best management practices for post-coal-mine reforestation is needed to develop to promote the success of forest reclamation and restoration in post-coal-mining lands through the planting of high-value hardwood trees, increasing trees’ survival rates and growth, and accelerating the establishment of forest habitat through the application of proper tree planting technique. The monitoring and evaluation aspect is also crucial, as corrective action may be taken considering the different success rates for different site characteristics.

Efficiently enumerating minimal triangulations

We present an algorithm that enumerates all the minimal triangulations of a graph in incremental polynomial time. Consequently, we get an algorithm for enumerating all the proper tree decompositions, in incremental polynomial time, where “proper” means that the tree decomposition cannot be improved by removing or splitting a bag. The algorithm can incorporate any method for (ordinary, single result) triangulation or tree decomposition, and can serve as an anytime algorithm to improve such a method. We describe an extensive experimental study of an implementation on real data from different fields. Our experiments show that the algorithm improves upon central quality measures over the underlying tree decompositions, and is able to produce a large number of high-quality decompositions.

Potential for Sugar Maple to Provide High-Quality Sawlog Trees at the Northern Edge of Its Range

AbstractThe management of sugar maple (Acer saccharum) at the northern edge of its range is mainly oriented toward timber production, from trees of higher grades. However, both the quality of mature trees in natural stands and how the quality may vary depending on the silvicultural treatment are unknown, especially under northern conditions. The objective of this study was to describe the variation in stem quality of mature maple trees (diameter >33 cm) according to climatic, geographic or soil variables, and to evaluate the effects of a first selection cutting cycle on this quality. Annual temperature (1.7–4.1° C) was the most important variable explaining differences in the proportion of higher-grade trees, with a 16 percent gain associated with every additional increase in degrees Celsius. The practice of a first selection cutting was associated with an 11 percent gain in this proportion. Although the actual proportion of high-quality trees was below 35 percent on the coolest sites, a proper tree selection through silviculture could likely improve this proportion in future decades, whereas the potential effects of climate change are unclear.

Optimizing stand structure for tradeoffs between overstory and understory vegetation biomass in a larch plantation of Liupan Mountains, Northwest China

Understory vegetation biomass (UVB) is necessary for forest stability and supply of numerous forest ecosystem services (FES). However, UVB is often ignored in traditionally managed overly dense plantations. A tradeoff approach between the overstory biomass (OB) and UVB, based on the quantitative evaluation of overstory stand structure effects on UVB, was examined using 82 sample plots of larch (Larix Principis-rupprechetii) plantation in the Liupan Mountains (LPM), northwest China. Results showed that with rising tree density at given age, the single tree biomass decreased, but the OB increased. The UVB decreased significantly with rising OB. The optimal canopy density of 0.7 was suggested to balance OB and UVB. The corresponding proper tree densities calculated using fitted model were about 2600, 2000, 1600, 1250, 1000 trees/ha for the ages of 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 years, respectively. These proper tree densities lead to an increase of single tree biomass by 0.8%, 4.1%, 3.9%, 4.1%, 5.5%, an increase of UVB by 0.9%, 10.1%, 16.1%, 32.2%, 88.5%, but a decrease of OB by 2.9%, 13.26%, 12.5%, 13.3%, 18.5%, compared with the stands having the maximum tree densities of 2700, 2400, 1900, 1500 and 1300 trees/ha. The study can help to guide the multifunctional forest management and to uplift FES of degraded plantation.

Urban trees management methods and their suitability for creating databases

The number of decisions permitting the removal of trees in cities is increasing every year, which suggests long-term negligence, or rather insufficient funds for proper management of urban forests. Lack of appropriate tools causes difficulties in the decision-making process. This problem is especially important in a situation of increased pressure exerted by residents to remove trees, mainly due to the safety reasons. An essential element in maintaining the proper tree management in a city is to improve management systems by applying comprehensive methods and tools. For this reason, many methods are used to support the inventory and identification of dangerous trees. The presented research is a response to the need for unification of management systems based on the most effective and proven methods of defining the resource, health and static condition, value, assessment of tree life expectancy or tree damage. Such a multilateral approach can improve the safety and management of urban forests. The results of the presented analyses led to the formulation of objective guidelines for the urban tree management standards.

Avenue Tree Health Assessment in a Tropical City-A Case Study from Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, Kerala, India

Avenue trees in cities has become a serious safety issue reporting several tree accidents especially during monsoon time. A common urban condition is the felling of avenue trees for health and safety reasons or for widening of road as a part of traffic management. These situations may lead to the injudicious cutting of trees in urban areas. At the same time the trees with damage, rot or serious bend can be extremely hazardous. With proper tree health assessment and appropriate risk management trees could probably be saved from felling and also help in avoiding tree accidents. This work was designed to evaluate and assess tree health condition at Thiruvananthapuram Corporation and to recommend the appropriate action needed to be taken. A direct tree survey was conducted to determine the type and health condition of avenue trees at five different wards of Thiruvananthapuram Corporation. Location of each trees surveyed were identified and field work was conducted. Tree locations were recorded using a GPS. A Tree health data sheet was used to record and analyse the status of trees. About 63 parameters were observed and recorded which include different conditions of the crown, physical damages to the root, trunk and branches; damages caused by disease and pest attack; mechanical damages and soil conditions. Of the 1276 trees assessed, 23 trees were found extremely disastrous which should be removed at the earliest, 32 trees were found to pose threats to public for which pruning is recommended, and 19 trees were found to be in the land slipping area which may also require additional interventions for management.

Influence of Scattered Cordiaafricana and Crotonmacrostachyus Trees on Selected Soil Properties, Microclimate and Maize Yield in Eastern Oromia, Ethiopia

The study was conducted to investigate the impact of scattered trees in farmland on selected soil physicochemical properties, microclimates, and maize grain yieldin Oda Bultum district, Eastern Oromia, Ethiopia. For the experiment of soil physicochemical properties, three factors: distance from tree trunk with four levels (at 0.5m of crown, mid of crown, edge of crown radius and open field), soil depth with two levels (0-15cm and 15–30cm depth) and tree species with two levels with factorial arrangement in RCBD replicated four times were employed. For microclimates and maize yield only two factors; distance from tree trunk with two levels(at mid crown & open field) for microclimates and distance with four levels(at 0.5m of crown, mid of crown, edge of crown radius and open field) for maize yield and tree species (Cordiaafricana and Croton macrostachyus) with two levels in RCBD replicated four times were used. The result revealed soil texture was not influenced significantly (P>0.05) by tree species. Soil bulk density was significantly (p 0.05) influenced by both tree species. Relative illumination, air temperature, soil temperature were significantly (p<0.05) higher at open field than canopy zone while soil moisture was significantly (p<0.05) higher under canopy of trees than open field. Though not significant, maize yield was slightly higher at open field than canopy zone. It can be concluded that these tree species have the potential to improve soil fertility and moisture beneath its canopy. Thus, integration of these trees on farmlands might require proper tree crown management to increase relative illumination under the canopy and increase grain yield of maize.

Monitoring Young Tree Survival with Citizen Scientists: The Evolving Tree Checkers Program in Philadelphia, PA

Citizen science programs are not static; they change over time in response to new program priorities and emerging technologies, as well as to improve work flow for program staff and volunteers. In this article, the authors present a case study of an evolving urban forestry citizen science program at the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, a nonprofit organization in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. The Tree Checkers program involves tree stewards recording data each summer about recently planted tree survival, growth, crown vigor, and maintenance, while also engaging their neighbors to encourage proper tree care. The program began in 2011, but changed in 2016 to use a new online data collection tool that was integrated into a larger tree data management system. Tree Checkers has also shifted to be more focused on rigorous data to report program performance and share information with researchers, whereas the earlier years of Tree Checkers were centered on enabling and encouraging neighborhood tree stewards to plan for tree care. A recent data quality evaluation showed that volunteer data was reasonably consistent with data reported by more experienced interns for tree survival, vigor, and trunk measurements, but stewardship variables were not interpreted and recorded consistently. By making rigorous data more central to Tree Checkers, program staff also sought to institutionalize monitoring within the organization, allowing for direct comparisons of outcomes year-to-year. The authors close with lessons learned that are relevant to other organizations seeking to create or enhance outcomes monitoring programs with citizen scientists.

Reliable data gathering in the Internet of Things using artificial bee colony

The Internet of Things (IoT) technology enables physical devices to communicate with each other for preparing, gathering, and sharing hazard warnings or critical information without human intervention. With respect to emergency applications of IoT technology, an essential issue is to provide an efficient and robust scheme for data gathering. The proposed solution in the existing approaches is to construct a spanning tree over the IoT devices and collect data using the tree. The shortcoming of these algorithms is that they do not take into account the probability of device mobility or failure. In such cases, the spanning tree is split, and it becomes impossible to deliver critical data to the base station on time. In this paper, we propose a reliable spanning tree construction algorithm, which is called reliable spanning tree construction in IoT (RST-IoT). Our algorithm utilizes the artificial bee colony algorithm to generate proper trees. In this method, hop count distances of the devices from the base station, residual energies of the devices, and their mobility probabilities are considered to measure the appropriateness of the trees. Moreover, the proposed algorithm generates a number of trees instead of a single one. These trees are arranged according to their preferences and used for data gathering in succession. Each tree is employed for data gathering upon splitting the preceding one. The simulation results show that RST-IoT improves the reliability of data gathering in emergency applications compared to the previous approaches.

Factors Influencing Hazardous Street Trees at Selected City Council in Malaysia

Street trees are an important part of city development. Proper tree management provides conducive environment for socialization. Previous research revealed the social factors and hazards associated with urban street trees but the elements that influence was not known. The objectives are: to investigate the elements of the social factors and to determine the influence of these elements towards hazardous street trees.480 questionnaires distributed among expert and public within 9 city councils. The findings revealed that 5 elements that influence the hazardous street trees; uncontrollable street planting, tree vandalism, near to neighbourhood context, lack of public awareness and poor nursery stock and failure care.

Mapping of Tree Damage Classification in The Western Part of Medan City Green Belts Using Geographic Information System

The existence of trees in the cities is very important. Trees play an important role as an absorber of CO2 and a storage facility for carbon (C). This study aimed to classify and map the tree damage in the Western Part of Medan City Green Belts. The experiment was conducted using the Forest Health Monitoring (FHM) and the classification of tree damage classes was determined based on the scoring of index values based on USDA Forest Service. The results showed that there were 46 very healthy trees, 976 healthy trees, 1114 lightly damaged trees, 167 medium trees and 9 dead trees. The level of tree damage was dominated by the lightly damaged trees class. If the health of the tree is well preserved, then the tree can perform its function properly. Therefore, it is necessary to carry outthis research to provide important information about the damage of the trees then it can be used as a reference for the proper trees care activities.