Month: March 2015

Who says learning only happens indoors? Beaverton students recently took the classroom outside–and left a positive, lasting impression on their local ecosystem.

About 100 eighth-graders from Beaverton Health and Science School went to the Willow Creek Greenway to learn about Oregon’s native species and plant trees along the creek bank. They got their hands dirty getting first-hand experience on how to help their community reach long-term environmental goals. The students successfully planted some 400 willow, red twig dogwood, Douglas-fir, and Pacific ninebark trees–which will clean surrounding air and provide wildlife habitats for generations to come.

This special tree planting Portland-area field trip was part of Tualatin Hills Park and Recreation District’s outreach service program that educates students at their local parks.

It’s a simple truth: Environmental education is important. Today’s children are tomorrow’s leaders. They need to know how to take care of our natural resources to ensure the well being of future generations. But with today’s abundance of high-tech distractions, kids often turn to the TV when they could be getting in touch with nature. Getting connected with technology can disconnect us from the natural environment. Consider these troubling facts:

• On average, American children between the ages of 6 and 11 spend about 28 hours a week watching television instead of playing outside.
• Kids who consistently spend more than 4 hours per day watching television are more likely to be overweight and face health problems.
• Two out of three adult Americans failed a basic 12-question multiple-choice quiz about the environment, according to the National Environmental Education Foundation.

To cultivate healthy and responsible youth, we need to promote environmental stewardship. More than one in six Americans spend their daily life in K-12 schools, where environmental curriculum is rarely incorporated in lesson plans. That’s unfortunate, since studies show that environmental education improves children’s lives by:

• Heightening children’s imagination and enthusiasm for academics.
• Building critical thinking and relationship skills.
• Enhancing cognitive functions, such as reasoning, problem solving, and memory.
• Fostering both cooperation skills and leadership qualities.
• Inspiring learning opportunities outside the classroom.
• Helping students and teachers feel empowered about their roles in their communities.
• Encouraging children to go outside and be physically active.

If young people don’t spend time outside gaining a basic understanding of the environment, how can we expect them to take on the daunting environmental challenges on the horizon?

With service-learning programs, students can incorporate lessons about the environment into their everyday life. After removing litter from Willow Creek, we’re betting these Beaverton students are thinking twice about where they leave their trash. They might not pursue a career in the outdoors, like say, becoming certified arborists, but at least they’ll be in the right mindset to care for our planet.

Only an educated public can ensure a healthy environment. Every industry can benefit from environmental education, from teachers training tomorrow’s leaders, to scientists developing clean energy technologies, to health professionals advocating for pollution controls, to business managers understanding the impacts of their investments. Environmental education isn’t just good for the planet; it’s good for humankind. As your Portland and Beaverton tree service company, we’re thrilled to see opportunities for area youth to experience and care for the environment.

This post first appeared on https://www.urbanforestprofessionals.com

Do trees fascinate you? Do you jump at the chance to help others? If so, we recommend applying for the Portland Fruit Tree Project’s Harvest and Stewardship Internship. As certified arborists, Portland opportunities for learning about and protecting trees excite us. This internship is an incredible opportunity for budding arborists who want more hands-on experience working with Portland trees.

Portland Fruit Tree Project (PFTP) gathers fruit from Portland trees that would otherwise go unharvested. By organizing volunteer groups to pick fruit before it falls, PFTP prevents waste. What’s more, the group distributes the harvested fruit to people in need. Finally, this impressive Portland tree service organization presents hands-on workshops in how to care for trees and preserve their fruit.

As providers of Portland tree services, we’ve partnered with the Portland Fruit Tree Project many times over the years. Just last month, our founder Jeff Moore lead a winter fruit-pruning workshop hosted by PFTP. And every year, we help the PFTP harvest and distribute thousands of pounds of Portland fruit that would otherwise rot. To show our support for this exceptional non-profit, we’re promoting the Harvest and Stewardship Internship position.

The 2015 Harvest and Stewardship Intern Position with Portland Fruit Tree Project

Starting April 1^st and working 12-20 hours per week through September 30^th, the Harvest and Stewardship Intern will:
–Assist with the coordination of PFTP Tree Care Teams program and Tree Care Workshop series.
–Help to maintain Portland Fruit Tree Project’s Community Orchards;
–Co-Lead harvesting events;
–Coordinate harvesting program in general;
–Process new tree registrations and coordinate with registered fruit tree owners; and more.

The Harvest and Stewardship intern will work out of Portland Fruit Tree Project headquarters in NE Portland, but he or she will also travel throughout Portland for events and site visits. To learn more and apply for this opportunity, view PFTP’s description of the internship position. The internship is unpaid, but is rich with benefits, including experience in volunteer and event coordination, connections in the local agriculture and food movement, and personal pride in having helped so many people across Portland! Internship applications are due on Sunday, March 22^nd.

Don’t have 12 hours per week to spare? You can still get involved with this laudable organization. PFTP holds several events per week throughout the dryer months. From orchard work parties to tool repair workshops to educational series on food preservation, PFTP has something for everyone! Even if your schedule is packed, you can help by offering your fruit trees for harvesting.

This post first appeared on https://www.urbanforestprofessionals.com

A sudden cold snap last December damaged many fruit trees in Hood River, The Dalles, and northeastern Oregon. Some parts of the Mid-Columbia area saw temperatures dip below zero. Regional experts say such a damaging freeze hasn’t hit the area since 1955. Trees weren’t prepared for such cold temperatures at that time of year. In just a few days, conditions went from sixty degrees to five degrees or less. This killed many young trees and damaged spur wood. According to the East Oregonian, some growers near Milton-Freewater have already removed trees killed by the cold spell.

As Portland certified arborists, we’d like to dive into the biology behind why this cold snap caused such extensive fruit tree damage. Typical spring freezes damage blossoms. As this thorough chart from the Michigan State University extensions program shows, the extent of freeze damage depends upon bud development stage. At the swollen bud stage, for instance, sweet cherries can withstand 30 minutes of 23-degree temperature without damage. On the other end of the blossom spectrum, sweet cherries in full bloom can take 30 minutes of 29-degree weather without damage. Orchard managers are accustomed to freezing temperatures affecting blossoms themselves, and as such they know how to respond to keep fruit trees healthy and maximize blossoming.

However, last December’s frigid temperatures caused serious damage to fruit trees’ spur wood, which is the short twig on older branches that produces blossoms. Mike Omeg of Omeg orchards has found damage to 1-, 2-, and 3-year-old spur wood. The spur wood connects fruiting buds to the branch. Its connective tissue carries nutrients to the blossoms. By cutting back branch sections, orchard managers can get a visual understanding of freeze damage. Green and white tissue with no browning indicates no damage. However, Omeg and others have found that some spurs are showing browning caused by cold. Brown tissue appears after cells freeze and burst open. The brown tint is caused by sugars and other leaking cellular contents. That brown tissue is dead. Because the spur cells are so important in transporting nutrients to buds, orchard managers are concerned that their trees may not be able to bloom at all if spur damage is extensive.

Omeg recommends that orchard managers modify their pruning program to accommodate this freeze damage. First, he recommends that Hood River and Portland tree services get a sample of every orchard block. By categorizing spur and bud samples from each block of trees as healthy (all white and green tissue), damaged (some brown tissue), or dead (no visible green, almost all brown tissue), managers can make decisions about how to go forward with pruning.

If all the spurs on a branch are dead, that branch is finished. Buds will never grow there again because there is no way for the spurs to transfer nutrients. So it makes sense to cut away dead spur branches. However, this must be balanced with harvest costs. If too many branches are cut away, the orchard will have no way to stay economically viable, as there will be too few cherries to harvest and sell. Additionally, orchard managers must keep a close look out for borer insects and canker disease, which are likely to exploit weakened fruit trees. (This is also a smart thing to inquire after with your own local tree service.)

Portland, OR consumers could be seeing a reduced number of stone fruits (peaches, cherries, and plums) this spring, due to the spur wood damage from December’s cold temperatures. Apples growth could be hampered as well. Industry experts say we should expect 25% less sweet cherry production in the Mid-Columbia area. That could potentially drive up fruit prices.

To protect weakened trees from diseases, Omeg is planning a proactive approach of copper spray application. Copper is an effective spray for preventing many fruit tree diseases. However, overusing copper spray can cause a toxic build-up of copper in the soil. If you’re concerned about the health of your fruit trees, give us a call. Our professional arborists will be happy to visit your property and recommend effective solutions.

This post first appeared on https://www.urbanforestprofessionals.com

Driving around the Rose City, it’s easy to surmise that construction is up. According to Barry and Associates, 9,300 apartments have been built in the Portland area since 2013. And more than 20,000 more units have been proposed or are currently under construction. Any thriving urban landscape is perpetually changing, and Portland’s new edifices bode well for our city’s economic health. But how does all this construction affect city trees?

Salem residents are asking that question about parking lot construction at the Salem Hospital. Neighbors say the hospital is violating Land Use requirements for a scaled-back parking lot. Their concern stems from the hospital’s action of clearing an 8 ½ acre property, and cutting down 32 trees in the process. Protective orange netting has been placed around remaining trees, but much of the netting is placed within the trees’ drip zones and critical root zones. That means heavy equipment is rolling over the trees roots, potentially causing lasting damage.

To appreciate why this is problematic, let’s dive into a bit of arboreal biology. Picture a tree like a wine glass; the cup is the branches and leaves, while the foot of the wine glass represents the tree’s drip line—where the branches drop water into the underlying soil. Meanwhile, the tree’s roots can extend far beyond the drip line. An older tree’s critical root radius may be double that of its drip line radius.

When heavy equipment is parked or driven over critical root zones, underlying soil is compacted, and air, moisture, and nutrients are less able to reach the tree’s roots. Some species are more sensitive to root compaction than others. White pines are very sensitive to this problem, while river birches are more tolerant.

This is only one of several ways that construction work can damage trees.

Construction: Negative Impacts on Trees

• Root cutting may occur when excavators rip through the soil within a tree’s critical root radius.
• Soil compaction can stem from heavy construction equipment and supplies being piled beneath trees’ drip zones. Compacted soils pose other threats; for one thing, compacted soil cannot absorb as much water, and will be far more prone to flooding.
• Smothering roots by adding more soil can cause the tree equivalent of suffocation. Most of a tree’s nutrient absorption happens within the first foot of soil. Adding as little as an inch or two of extra soil can have a significant negative impact on tree absorption.
• Trunk and crown injuries may happen when construction equipment tears up bark or branches.
• Removal of surrounding trees may leave standing trees more vulnerable to sun, wind, and ice damage.

As Portland arborists, we know how much Portlanders love their trees! If you’re a homeowner who’s planning a remodel, have no fear. Our Portland certified arborists are happy to visit your site and provide professional recommendations on how to best protect beloved trees. When seeking to protect trees against construction, Portland tree services (including Urban Forest Pros) would recommend taking the following steps:

1. Plan with a professional arborist. Discuss suggested grade changes (which could suffocate roots), trenches (which could sever roots) and routes for construction machinery (which could compact soil).
2. Boost tree health prior to construction. The healthier that your trees are before construction stress, the more likely they are to survive remodeling work. Work with your arborist to improve soil health and fertilize as needed.
3. Require contractors to install barriers around trees that will be preserved. Team up with your arborist to ensure that these barriers are properly placed at or beyond the drip line, to protect trees’ roots. To add bite to your bark, include fines for violating tree barriers in your written construction specs. Include similar language and priorities when working with any landscaping crews once construction is complete.
4. Layer wood bark mulch over root zones that cannot be included within protective barriers. Six to twelve inches of mulch can help minimize compaction. Note: Be sure to remove mulch as soon as possible, as it can limit tree nutrient uptake if left in place too long.
5. Keep an eye on tree health during construction. Regularly visit the construction site to see that trees are doing well. Consistently water the protected root zones of your trees during construction to avoid water stress. Ongoing observation will allow you to quickly spot any damage, photograph it, and immediately notify the contractor of written agreement violations. During your visits, also check that protective barriers are still in place as originally set.
6. Arrange for post-construction assessment of tree health. After the remodeling project is complete, arrange another visit with your UFP arborist. He or she can spot any new damage and provide treatment to keep your trees healthy.

The City of Portland has legislation in place to protect trees and other landscaping during commercial construction. Homeowners can review those guidelines for additional construction recommendations. Finally, we’re always happy to provide information on protecting trees from construction—just call us!

This post first appeared on https://www.urbanforestprofessionals.com