DEVELOPING AN URBAN CONTEXT TO ENABLE SERVICE LIFE DISCUSSIONS FOR TREE AND CANOPY MANAGEMENT

• Sponsoring Institution: National Institute of Food and Agriculture
• Project Status: COMPLETE
• Funding Source: MCINTIRE-STENNIS
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 1003899
• Project Start Date: Oct 1, 2014
• Project End Date: Sep 30, 2018
• Program Code: [(N/A)]- (N/A)

Recipient Organization
RUTGERS, THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW JERSEY
3 RUTGERS PLZA
NEW BRUNSWICK,NJ 08901-8559

Performing Department
Ecology, Evolution & Natural Resources

Non Technical Summary
Building upon earlier work using urban tree inventories, this project seeks to put an urban context into the management approaches of forestry. Specifically, the project addresses three linked objectives. One common management task is developing inventory analyses to describe canopy species and age class distributions. In developing management choices, our principal limitations are those of assigning an age estimate to the measured size developed in field inventories, and designating over-maturity, or when to begin thoughts of proactive transitions in canopy or community structure. Toward that end, our project moves along three project objectives. Objective 1 develops an age-to-trunk diameter estimator for common urban trees growing in three common tree planting design situations, based on access to soil (pits, strips and lawns). Observations suggest different growth expectations in different design situations, based on trunk size and canopy size measures. We seek to link these measures with age to target growth impacts and service life estimation for better urban tree management organization. We additionally look to discuss over-maturity in the designed landscape. We explore and develop this aspect in risk (root plate architecture of large trees and wind-caused tree wind-throw) as objective 2, and in citizen-based observation and data input for species occurrance (inventory analysis of target species within specific pest infestation zones) as objective 3. Objective 4 specifically targets the development of management tools and methods to address the Emerald Ash Borer, which has arrived in New Jersey and is poised to be a significant disturbance with himpact on municipal tree service life management decisions. .Through these projects, we can develop better context and discussions of canopy transition in the urban and municipal canopy within more standard forestry management constructs.

Animal Health Component

100%

Research Effort Categories

Basic

0%

Applied

100%

Developmental

0%

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
124	0620	3100	100%

Knowledge Area
124 - Urban Forestry;

Subject Of Investigation
0620 - Broadleaf forests of the North;

Field Of Science
3100 - Management;

Keywords

service life

urban forestry

tree inventory

emerald ash borer

Goals / Objectives
The over-arching goal of this proposal is to further develop the context and lexicon to discuss forest management and ecological function within the urban system.Objective 1: Develop a better sense for defining the service life of the urban tree, and relate the amount of service and design life of the service to an easily defined parameter (access to open soil space).Objective 2: Develop the role of risk from storm-related failure as an aspect of over-maturity in the developed landscape. This study uses the whole-tree failures from Superstorm Sandy as basis to further develop loading descriptions in tree failure and common failure traits to inform diagnostics in tree risk assessment.Objective 3: Develop an understanding of, and connectedness to, the urban tree canopy among the citizenry.Objective 4: Provide community management support for Emerald Ash Borer

Project Methods
Objective 1: Calibrate a resistance drill with common trees in NJ streetscapes. Species will be determined from existing community tree databases. The tool will compare dendrochonological capacity (a designed purpose) with cross-sections of live wood to verify accuracy. Trees in several communities will be drilled to develop algorithms of diameter-to-age based on tree planting types: pit-strip-lawn. We suggest several hundred trees per species for this analysis.Objective 2: Develop a tensile loading jig to test freshly harvested root sections acrossseveral species. These tests will be applied to observations ofwindthrown trees from Super-storm Sandy, and othersas storm events occur in proximity of the research team. These studies will coalesce into a description or early model of wind-overturn of large urban landscape trees in novel windfields, to inform risk management inquiries and the discussion of over-maturity in a non-biological sense.Objective 3: Furtherexpansion and enhancement of current programming efforts in community tree inventory development. Training will engage community volunteers to develop a citizen science platform for the development of tree-related inventory and management questions.Objective 4:We will useresistance drill data from Objective 1 to assess the maximum treatment size inEmerald AshBorer management. Since the treatment period is estimated to be 15 years, and the tree must live beyond treatment for a period to recoup the treatment investment, resistance drill data enables us to take established maximum tree size from aggregated inventory data and reduce the size by 20 years based on ring count analysis to suggest a maximum tree size worthy of treatment. Treatment of larger trees can be avoided as they will not live through the treatment period or recoup the treatment investment, better informing consultants and communities who consider pesticide treatments as an option. The data will be entered into the Purdue Cost Calculator with scenarios as a service technical document for communities to discuss and inform their own response, and enable the state taskforce to see the statewide impacts threats and management opportunities.

Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/18

Outputs
Target Audience:This project focuses on urban forest management research primarily targeted to professional management audiences, both in urban forest canopy management, and in individual tree arboricultural care. Toward that end, the project research has been included into several extension-level presentations to provide direct linkage of program findings to the applications audience. Additionally, manuscripts and poster development has served as communication of the project findings in the research community. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?In this final year, several undergraduate students were allowed to work in the field and develop data on the growth and form of urban trees with consideration to planting space design choice. These students were supervised by a doctoral student who is continuing work in this area of research for NJ Urban Forestry. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?This work has been referenced and mentioned in several local and regional extension conference venues. Publication of the work in research and practitioner publication avenues has been submitted or completed. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Toward Objective 1: We have made our anticipated progress. As we continue working on data analysis specific to NJ urban forest species growth and form, this current frame can accept and refine for specific guidance for regional urban forest planning and evaluation. Obective 2 has been augmented by an additional study completed looking at root grwoth in response to wind loading over time. Objective 3 has become an outreach aspect with programming using the project findings in volunteer urban forest management plan development efforts and training through additonal linkages with State agencies. Objective 4 has been incorporated into several outreach efforts, most notably the further establishment of a new Multi-agency group in NJ to address forestry resilience and disease-pest issues: NJ FLAPR (Forest, Landscape, Agriculture Pest Roundtable) which serves to coordinate and leverage both research and response frames in NJ to address multiple pest challenges. We have developed a large image catalog of trees, calibrated for allometric analysis. We have targeted 10 species in four urban planting design types, across their range of size from planting to maximum observed size. Further development of replication in specific species-planting groups will be developed in future efforts. Analysis of this new data set will be coupled with the existing and previously reported growth ring analysis on the same species/region/site type framework.

Publications

• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Salisbury A B, Gallagher F J, Caplan J S, Grabosky J C. 2018. Maintenance of photosynthesis by Betula populifolia in metal contaminated soils. Science of the Total Environment. 625 (2018): 1615-1627.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2018 Citation: Grabosky J. Observation of wind loading influences in radial root growth dissymmetry in two maple species. Landscape Below Ground IV: Proceedings on an International Workshop on Tree Root Development in Urban Soils. Morton Arboretum. October 2018.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2018 Citation: Salisbury A , Grabosky J. After 20 years, growth trajectories of two oak species in a working streetscape in NYC. Landscape Below Ground IV: Proceedings on an International Workshop on Tree Root Development in Urban Soils. Morton Arboretum. October 2018
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2019 Citation: Grabosky J and Gucunski N. The influence of root position and growth on pavement tensile crack failure when occurring under an asphaltic concrete pavement section. Submitted: Urban Forestry Urban Greening

Progress 10/01/16 to 09/30/17

Outputs
Target Audience:This project focuses on urban forest management research primarily targeted to professional management audiences, both in urban forest canopy management, and in individual tree arboricultural care. Toward that end, the project research has been included into several extension-level presentations to provide direct linkage of program findings to the applications audience. Additionally, manuscripts and poster development has served as communication of the project findings in the research community. Changes/Problems:Work toward fractal dimensioning is diminishing in priority to favor allometric relationships for more direct practical use of the growth curve/ring analysis on urban trees and the effects of design choices (tree pit, vegetation strips and lawns) on urban canopy expectations over time. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Graduate student development at the masters and doctoral level. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?This year findings and outreach has been predominantly through conference and meeting presentations across multiple stakeholder groups. Models of EAB spread were used to inform state EAB Trapping Programs, which did show positive findings for the insect. Previous works on modeling EAB impacts on municipal budgets for management were used to estimate the cost of the EAB outbreak to NJ Comunities in total by the NJ DEP. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Work in the coming year prioritizes finish of the root growth data analysis, the development of documentation of resistance drill technical and growth modelling results and consideration of the role of site type on growth rate versus life-span.A new data set from a population south of NJ is planned to gauge growth rates in expected future environmental situations. Allometric relationships across 4-6 targeted species are planned to link to the growth data to better inform several levels of local and national growth modelling.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Toward Objective 1: Computer code has been refined and executed to convert resistance drill outputs into growth curve increment analysis. Over 3300 tree records 10 species and 4 planting site types to assist in management planning with growth rate by trunk diameter. Analysis is ongoing. Protocol to link trunk diameter data to allometric relationships of height and canopy spread are in place for the coming year of field data collection. Student research culminated in an MLA thesis, using a portable photosynthesis meter across multiple sites to help develop both informed design and baseline data for urban plant water budgeting. a PhD dissertation was completed looking at soil metals and forest stand productivity and water use. The 20th year data set on a long-term (30 year target) working tree installation study in NYC was completed. Tissue samples are in the processing phase to link to growth and photosynthesis data, as small treatment responses to a designed pavement-supporting soil are observed when compared to a vegetated tree lawn on opposite side of street. Toward Objective 2: Root system samples from a harvest of 55 year old Red Maple trees have been sectioned and root growth patterns have been tallied. The data set is 80% complete prior to any analysis and combination with linked data set on Silver Maple from the same testing site population. Toward Objective 3: There has been synergistic work on creating Special issues on Citizen Science in Urban Forestry with the Journal: Arboriculture & Urban Forestry. Toward Objective 4: Several presentations have been developed and deployed. PI is also chair of the Emerald Ash Borer Multi-Agency Taskforce Group in NJ to both validate and coordinate EAB outreach efforts to multiply effectiveness of educational efforts across the state.

Publications

• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Ryan, J., & Rutgers University. Graduate School--New Brunswick. (2017). Consider the shrub: Ecology and design in parking lots.
• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Salisbury, A., & Rutgers University. Graduate School--New Brunswick. (2017). Photosynthetic capacity along a gradient of trace element contamination in a spontaneous urban forest community.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Salisbury AB, Reinfelder RR, Gallagher FJ, Grabosky JC. 2017. Long term stability of trace element concentration in a spontaneously-vegetated urban brownfield with anthropogenic soils. Soil Science 182(2):69-81.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Grabosky J and Bassuk N. 2016. Seventeen years growth of street trees in structural soil compared with a tree lawn in New York City. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 16:103-109.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Salisbury, A., J. Grabosky. Nineteen Years of Tree Growth in Structural Soils. (Poster) 2016 Northeast Regional Urban Extension Conference, Newark, NJ. Nov. 2016.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Grabosky J., Ravit E. and Gallagher F. 2017. Influencing the outcomes in a cycle of redevelopment for the good of urban canopy. Arboricultural Consultant. 50(3):4-10.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Grabosky, J. 2017. Life cycle curves linked to root zone colonization space for urban trees as a foundation to meet urban forest design and longevity goals. Acta Hortic. 1189, 363-370. DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2017.1189.70
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Salisbury S. An update on a multi-decade study of tree growth in structural soils. 2017 Mid-Atlantic Ecological Society of America Annual Conference, Stockton University, NJ. April 22, 2017
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Salisbury S. Photosynthetic responses of mature Betula populifolia trees growing in trace element contaminated anthropogenic soil. 2017 Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America, Portland OR. August 9, 2017.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Caplan J S, Stone B W G, Faillace C A, LaFond J J, Baumgarten J M, Mozdzer T J, Dighton J, Meiners S J, Grabosky J C, Ehrenfeld J G. 2016. Nutrient foraging strategies of forest shrubs correspond to interspecific differences in productivity and population growth. Annals of Botany doi: 10.1093/aob/mcw217.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Arbab, N. J .Conley and J. Grabosky. 2016.Projections of Invasive Emerald Ash Borer Dispersal Risk in New Jersey . Poster presented at the Annual Conference of Computational Social Science Society of America (CSSSA). Santa Fe, NM, November 16-20.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Arbab, N.. and J.Grabosky. 2016.Socio-Ecological Impacts of Emerald Ash Borer in New Jersey. Paper presented at the International Society for Ecological Modelling Global Conference, Towson, MD, May 8-12.
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Grabosky J Bassuk N. Chapter 22. Design Options to Integrate Urban Tree Root Zones and Pavement Support within a Shared Soil Volume In: Ferrini F, Konijnendijk van den Bosch C, Fini A. Eds. Routledge Handbook of Urban Forestry. 2017.

Progress 10/01/15 to 09/30/16

Outputs
Target Audience:Target audience for urban tree management has been composed of master gardeners, community forestry volunteers, and tree care professionals. we have reached these groups by presentations at extension-level conferences and industry meetings. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Objective 1: One doctoral student who started collecting data in June 2016. One Computer Science undergraduate, introduced to forestry as part of the research project. Objective 2: One undergraduate student who is developing the sectioning of the roots and measurements from the archived roots. Objective 4: Two undergraduates assisted in a statewide confernec ewith over 400 attendees as volunteers, Public Works employees, or tree care professionals. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?At this point, we have many presentations to varied audiences. We have worked on a pair of webinars for states stakeholders for Emerald Ash Borer, the first presented to the NJ League of Municipalities. We have placed popular press articles into a series of professional and volunteer tree care newsletters. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Analysis of resistance drill data. Development of data sets for a second tree architecture study to inform life cycle analysis. Development of a data set and manuscript on root growth patterning. Possible collection of second resistance drill dataset.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1: A large tree data set has been collected and is under development to establish growth rates and DBH-Age estimation functions for common trees to Northern and Central NJ urban tree canopy. A computer engineering student has developed code to enable machine-learning algorithms to enable analysis of the resistance drill outputs within a r-based computing analysis environment. Objective 2: During a large biomechanics event in Ohio, roots from eight 55-year-old acer Rubrum have been collected to compare perennial growth patterns in reference to prevailing winds and exposure. Objective 3: Several general outreach programs and three 8 hour workshops have been developed, facilitated and presented to over 300 community volunteers as part of CORE training for community shade tree commissions toward community forest management planning. Master gardener training in urban forestry topics have also been provided. Objective 4: Presentations and training for EAB has directly connected with 67 townships. Several extension level outreach pieces have been developed. PI has been placed as Chair of the NJ Emerald Ash Borer Task Force to help organize state agency responses, and to assist in getting valid research and outreach products into community volunteer groups. Program has been in assistance with a state-wide trapping program, over 67 townships participating in the EAB trapping program in 2016.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Grabosky J. 2016 "Growth rate modeling with resistance recording drill" International Society of Arboriculture Annual Meeting Ft Worth TX
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Grabosky J. 2016. "Root zone colonization space for urban trees as a foundation to meet design and longevity goals." 6th int. conf on Landscape and urban horticulture. Int Soc Hort Sci. Athens Greece.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Grabosky J. 2016. "Developing an urban context to service life expectations for canopy management planning". Am Soc Consulting Arborist Annual meeting Boston Mass. 12/3/16
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Webinar in collaboration with NJ Dept. Ag and NJ Dept Env. Protection, Forestry. Zipse P. Kurtz. P. Yoo R. Planning for Emerald Ash Borer in NJ. For NJ League of Municipalities

Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/15

Outputs
Target Audience:tree care professionals tree care volunteers urban land managers Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Graduate student and undergraduate introduction to research, tree growth and development and image analysis has been provided. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Over 15 presentations have been delivered on Emerald Ash Borer to professional and volunteer audiences. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Manuscript development and expansion of the drilling program once calibration/verification analysis is complete. Continued work with EAB

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The work with citizen science and urban forestry is completed with our graduate student. It yielded a 16 hour short course and a follow-up 8 hour short course on community tree inventroies and using I-tree for community forest programs. Additionally, the student worked with USDA FS Philadelphia Field Station of similar citizen science research and outreach programming. A complete data set over 8+ common species , 20+ trees per species is developed to compare resistograph outputs with paired dendrochronology cores to evaluate and verify tool use in collection of growth data across NJ street trees. This supplements the earlier work on service life, and provide additional data for Ash trees and their management in the face of the the invasive insect (EAB). The data can also move DBH data trends describing overmaturity toward a planning phase, by building a DBH-age algorithm species to site type.

Publications

• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: COMMUNITY CAPITAL GROWS ON TREES Dan Betz. MS terminal report. R. Jordon, J Grabosky advisors