Tree Bark, News From Urban Forestry - All Trees, No Pulp

URBAN FORESTRY

November 2018, published twice a month

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Canopy Story, a Website Where Trees Are Identified by Their Stories

A collaboration between Portland State University and the US Forest Service, Canopy Story allows users to choose a tree and contribute their story to a map of Portland.

A guest article from Portland State University Professor Vivek Shandas:

Do you have a story about a tree in Portland? If so, consider posting it on the Canopy Story website by Friday, November 30, 2018. This website is a way for community members to identify a tree and write a brief story about it.

No story is too short, too long, right or wrong. We only ask that the story reflects your experience with a tree in Portland. Together our collective stories will bring to life the ways we connect with the trees in our city.

Here are a few examples of canopy stories for inspiration:

"Come visit me on the First of May. I am the Sunnyside Wish Tree!" —Gillian (Sunnyside Neighborhood)

"Tree 177.. is an Araucaria araucana, otherwise known as a Monkey Puzzle Tree. When I first moved to the neighborhood I strolled past this tree and was totally blown away. I'd never seen a tree like it! Turns out these are native to central and southern Chile. Every time I bike past this tree (two times a day, five days a week), I wave to the tree and say "Hey Monkey Puzzle Tree", even when i'm huffing and puffing up the the large hill which it resides on." —Alec T (Mt. Tabor Neighborhood)

"This giant tree shades my home and many of the other homes around us. We have sweetly named her "Big Bertha". I love walking up to my door every day and craning my neck up to look at the very tippy top of her. Such a beautiful tree." —Rebecca (Montavilla Neighborhood)

Consider posting one or more stories today! The site is at www.canopystory.org. With over 150 and counting, our goal is to collect 500 stories. Please help us tell the city's stories, and make your tree known!

For more information, email Professor Vivek Shandas at Portland State University at vshandas@pdx.edu.

Upcoming Events

Opportunities to learn and volunteer!

www.portlandoregon.gov/parks/workshops

Young trees benefit from proper pruning before problems are too big to correct.

Portland Pruners Training

Saturday, December 8, 2018, 9 am - 1 pm

Location: Mt Scott Community Center, 5530 SE 72nd Ave. (map)

Does your neighborhood have young street trees that you want to prune? Join us to learn about how experienced pruners can use Urban Forestry resources to prune street trees in your neighborhood.

This workshop will teach you:

How to get the permits and permissions needed to prune street trees
How to borrow pruning tools from Urban Forestry
How to organize small pruning events in your neighborhood

We will even get outside to practice pruning some trees, so you can prune with confidence. Learn more about the Portland Pruners Program here.

Register for the training here!

More Upcoming Events

Photos From Urban Forestry's Fall Foliage Photo Contest Are In! Vote Before Thursday, November 15, 2018.
See Portland’s street trees in beautiful fall colors and vote for your favorite photo. The voting deadline is almost here, and you can help pick the winner for our first Fall Foliage Photo Contest. See all the pictures and vote here.

Hillsdale Tree Team Treevia Night: Tuesday, November 27, 2018. 7:30 pm - 9:30 pm.
Ready to put your tree knowledge to the test and compete to win prizes? The Hillsdale Tree Team invites you to join them at The Ship Tavern at 7827 SW 35th Ave. (map) for tree-themed trivia and fun. Register here.

First Year of Urban Forest Inventory & Analysis Complete!

Urban FIA staff training in an urban area.

Urban Forestry staff collected data throughout Portland as part of a US Forest Service monitoring program called Urban Forest Inventory & Analysis.

In October, Urban Forestry staff completed data collection on trees and land use for the Urban Forest Inventory & Analysis (Urban FIA) program. Through this partnership with the US Forest Service (USFS), nearly 200 random study plots were established across Portland on both public and private lands.

Next steps: The USFS will look at all of Portland's data using i-Tree, a popular set of software tools used to calculate the benefits of trees. They will publish a canopy report and make all of the information available to the public through an online tool called My City’s Trees. With this tool, you will be able to access the data and create your own customized analyses and reports.

Combining Urban Forestry's Tree Inventory Project data for trees on public land with the Urban FIA data will improve urban forest management, allowing us to:

Monitor canopy and land use changes over time (follow-up data collection will occur on 10% of Urban FIA plots each year)
Determine impacts of population and climate change on our urban forest
Highlight urban trees as important infrastructure by measuring their benefits on public health, energy, and ecology
Improve canopy coverage to ensure that all Portlanders have access to the benefits that trees provide
Ensure our trees survive new pests and pathogens by continuing to plant diverse tree species
Contribute to national urban forestry datasets with consistent canopy measures

Stay tuned for an update on the reports and My City’s Trees App. For more information, contact Nik.Desai@PortlandOregon.gov.

In Other News

Upcoming Holiday Closures at Urban Forestry's Permit Center: Before heading to the Development Services Center for Urban Forestry Permitting, be sure to check the holiday closure schedule for the months of November, December, and January. Access our Alerts page here.

Dutch Elm Disease (DED) Report for Portland Now Available: Over 120 individual elm trees were inspected this summer for DED, a lethal disease. Due to monitoring efforts, 41 elm trees were removed after inspection. This is consistent with the 1% loss of elm trees each year over the 40-year history of DED in Portland. Read the Urban Forestry Elm Report here.

Portland Wild, a Map Driven Guide to Portland's Public Art Murals, Heritage Trees and Little Free Libraries: Check out a website that makes finding and discovering our urban riches easier and more fun. You can even plan a sightseeing route which the website will optimize for you. Visit the Portland Wild website here, and learn more about how it all came together here.

Tree Summit Presentations Available Online: For those of you who missed this year’s Tree Summit, all the presentations from the event are now available on our website. Researchers presented on everything from trees and air pollution to what is growing in Forest Park! View the presentations here.

Urban Forestry is Now Hiring a Botanic Specialist I - Forestry: Do you love engaging with communities, helping people learn about the benefits of trees, and teaching tree care and planting? Are you a skilled communicator who enjoys presenting and writing about the urban forest? If so, you may be the Botanic Specialist I - Forestry specialist that we are looking for! View the job description and apply here.

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1900 SW 4th Ave., Portland, OR 97201 • 503-823-8733

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Commissioner Nick Fish • Interim Director Kia Selley