Caring for That Forest in Your Yard
The reality of urban living is that if you live in a city, you live in a forest as well. It’s a difficult concept to wrap your head around, but as explained in a previous article, any tree in an urban setting is part of an urban forest. And forward-thinking communities recognize that urban forests play an essential role for quality of living, with benefits ranging from improved air quality to promoting mental health and well being.
Another reality is that the care and maintenance of urban forests isn’t just a city responsibility, rather a civic responsibility. We owe it to ourselves and the ‘greater community’ to look after not only the trees in our yards, but also on pubic land near where we live.
The idea of watering trees on public land runs counter to the common perception of treating those trees in front of our homes as ‘the city’s responsibility’, not ours. However, in speaking with Philip Wassenaer of Mississauga-based Urban Forest Innovations, one quickly comes to realize that a radical shift in mindset is needed if we truly care about the trees and forest where we live.
“Whether they realize it or not, residents are part of the (tree maintenance) program. Their taxes paid for the trees and the those trees are part of a green infrastructure that belongs to every community,” observes Wassenaer. In other words, we need to view our trees as a public asset that’s an essential part of our infrastructure the same way we view our roads.
So whether a tree is in your yard or on city-owned land in front of your home, one of the first things you can do Wassenaer says, is to make sure it gets enough moisture by watering the tree once a week. Ideally with a slow release soaker hose that’s allowed to run overnight, in order to allow the soil to get good and wet. Equally important he says, is to then allow the soil to dry out. The key is to not allow the soil to get too wet or too dry for extended periods. “Roots need water, air and minerals,” observes Wassenaer. If you water them all of the time, they don’t get enough air. If the soil is aired all of the time then there’s no water.”
Grass actually competes with tree roots for moisture.
Another critical aspect to tree health according to Wassenaer is to maintain a proper surface around the base of the tree. Avoid putting rocks or timbers around the tree and don’t worry about having a deep grass cover either, as all of these things reduce the amount of moisture passing through to the roots. The ideal surface is mulched wood chips. “It’s one of the simplest and best things you can do, because first of all mulch doesn’t compete for moisture the way grass does. But if you have mulch, the water passes through. And mulch or wood chips break down, providing nutrients in the soil that trees need.” Compost is another great thing to put at the base… but avoid artificially coloured mulch, which doesn’t break down as well. As for fertilizer, Wassenaer says the vast majority of trees don’t need it, especially if you’re already using mulch to enrich the soil.
As for planting new trees, contrary to the perception that spring and summer are the only good times to do your part to add to the urban forest, fall is actually an excellent time to plant a tree, as long it hasn’t sitting unattended in a nursery all summer long. “It’s a good time to plant in the fall, if you can get a good tree to plant, because this time of the year as well as the spring, the trees and the roots are growing faster.”
At the same time we’re caring for our trees, let’s also not lose sight of the forest. So just was we’re included to reach out to local politicians to make sure they’re taking care of our roads, get them thinking about our forests as well, whether in the form of a detailed as urban forest management plan or simply ensuring there’s a good tree maintenance program in place.
Author's note: this article was originally prepared for Postmedia. To read more articles like this, visit Mark's blog at: Sustainable Community Builder.