Street Trees
The well-composed elements of a city — buildings, architectural elements, street furniture, sculptures, street lamps, name boards, and street trees — contribute significantly to its aesthetic beauty. Among these elements, street trees add remarkable value and variety to the city landscape through their seasonal changes, natural colors, textures, freshness, and overall charm, while also offering numerous benefits. Street trees attract birds, insects, and other wildlife into urban spaces and make the cities alive. They also encourage walkability, increase property values, and make cities more appealing to visitors, keeping the city vibrant and active.
Most importantly, research confirms that street trees are significantly beneficial to urban residents, wildlife, and the environment, helping to maintain a balanced ecology in deeper ways. Recent research by NASA (as cited in Sorrel 2015) emphasized the essentiality of plant life in regulating urban temperatures generated in our cities through the masses of concrete structures and impervious surfaces. The amount and type of street vegetation have the ability to beat up the urban heat island effect and cool down the urban areas. As a result, street trees can reduce the need for air conditioning, lower power consumption, and create an appealing environment for users.
Additionally, street trees absorb carbon and other pollutants from the air, purify the urban environment, create distinctive landmarks and unique urban settings, increase property values by fostering harmonious and tranquil neighborhoods, manage stormwater runoff and protect soil erosion, reduce urban noise pollution generated by traffic and construction, enhance visual appeal, provide psychological benefits to city dwellers, and serve as habitats for birds, insects, and other wildlife, thereby promoting a healthier and more balanced urban ecosystem.
Therefore, street trees should be given the same protection and care as naturally grown trees in forests, recognizing their significant value and the multitude of benefits they bring to urban environments.
Incidentally, when landscaping streetscapes, it is essential to carefully plan with consideration for various factors: meaning and the character of the place; intended use; type and size of the street; soil conditions; microclimates; and building architecture. Larger trees with medium to large foliage could be well suited for wider streets, while popular and attractive trees are often preferred for ceremonial streets in civic spaces (“How to select the best trees…,” n.d.). However, tree specialists recommend incorporating diverse plant life into street tree groves to prevent the rapid spread of diseases, create variety, and attract a diverse range of birds, insects, and wildlife to the city. A variety of tree species makes streetscapes more resilient and ecologically balanced.
When selecting saplings for street planting, it is important to look for drought-tolerant and long-lasting species with appropriate root structures, such as deep-rooted and shallow-rooted trees. In view of their performance, deep-rooted trees are considered the best choice for urban streets due to their ability to spread their roots downward, seeking water and nutrients without causing damage to sidewalks by heaving up roots (ibid.). In contrast, shallow-rooted trees tend to spread their roots closer to the soil surface, seeking surface runoff water or rainwater from the tree canopy (ibid.). However, they can heave up sidewalk paving when the roots grow large. Furthermore, it is important to ensure that the mature tree canopy does not interfere with existing signage, electricity cables, wires, or street lights. The mature trunk and the root system should be planned in a way that does not disturb the surrounding infrastructure, utilities, sidewalks, or curbs.
Cherry, Dogwood, Ginkgo, Hickory, Hornbeam, Japanese Lilac Tree, Linden, Ornamental Pear Tree, Walnut, and White Oak are considered the best North American street trees by “How to Select the Best Trees…” (n.d.).
By choosing trees that are resilient to insects, can withstand rough environmental conditions, are compatible with the specific climate, and can grow alongside the city’s growth and residents’ visions and aspirations, we can ensure their long-term survival and foster a thriving urban canopy. These thoughtful considerations guarantee a sustainable and long-lasting street tree canopy in our urban areas while maintaining the overall integrity of the urban environment.
Reference:
Jones, M. (2021, April 15). Health Benefits of Trees. Think health. Retrieved May 23, 2023, from https://thinkhealth.priorityhealth.com/health-benefits-of-trees/
Reliance Foundry. (n.d.). How to select the best trees for sidewalks and tree grates: Street trees add green features and design value to cityscapes. Retrieved May 31, 2023, from https://www.reliance-foundry.com/blog/best-trees-for-streets-and-tree-grates
Samarasekara, D. (2023, May 25). Noise pollution: understanding its effects and exploring how trees can mitigate urban noise. Medium. https://medium.com/@dinushi.urbanforests/noise-pollution-understanding-its-effects-and-exploring-how-trees-can-mitigate-urban-noise-3cd7e6932908
Sorrel, C. (2015, Sep 8). NASA Explains Why You Should Live On A Tree-Lined Street–And A Tree-Lined City. Fast Company. Retrieved May 31, 2023, from https://www.fastcompany.com/3050554/nasa-explains-why-you-should-live-on-a-tree-lined-street-and-a-tree-lined-city
Schuknecht, C. (2015, Sep 22). Why Urban Trees Solve So Many of Our Problems. Sierra. https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/2015-5-september-october/green-life/why-urban-trees-solve-so-many-our-problems
