City Trees is a premier publication focused on urban + community forestry. In each issue, you’ll learn how to best manage the trees in your community and more!
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/65193
The City of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia long drought period where the average rainfall was nearly half that of long-term averages. The low rainfall combined with severe water restriction has resulted in a steep increase in tree mortality due to stress and die- back from lack of water. Our tree population of 70,000 park and street trees has many trees well over 100 years old, vulnerable to change, that are now in rapid decline. A Useful Life Expectancy assessment indicates that over the next twenty years we could lose over 40% of our existing trees. has recently emerged from an extended decade- The tree population of Melbourne includes an important population of approximately 6,500 elms (many species, but predominantly Ulmus procera and U. hollandica) that have never been affected by Dutch Elm Disease. The old- est of these trees date back to the period 1850-1860. These elms, along with London plane tree (Platanus x acerifolia) account for many of the large street trees in Melbourne and contribute character to many parks. London plane trees account for more than 75% of the trees in the Melbourne central business district. Our response to these immediate challenges and loss of trees has been, in the short term, to maintain the health of existing trees and, in the long term, to plan for the future forest. The short-term response has seen a significant effort to source and supply non-potable water to trees and green spaces by means of such thing as water-efficient drip lines, water barriers, deep soil water injection, tanker watering, and stormwater har- vesting. This has been combined with extensive mulch- ing of existing trees in parklands to remove competition for soil moisture by turf. Water Sensitive Urban Design plays a significant role in how we plant new trees to ensure that storm water naturally irrigates vegetation and cleans pollutants before it enters waterways. The development of an Urban Forest Strategy sets a clear vision to create a future forest that will be resilient, healthy, and diverse and will contribute to the health and wellbeing of our community and to the creation of a livable city. The strategy recognizes the key role that trees and green infrastructure play in underpinning the health of the community and the health of the city. In its Urban Forest Strategy, Melbourne makes provisions for signifi- cant tree planting efforts to offset the massive losses due to drought. 26 Stormwater harvesting is a key part of Water Sensitive Urban Design in Melbourne. City Trees