GUFC: Decatur Has More Trees Than Originally Estimated
Decatur Metro | August 13, 2012
You know when you find a clean $10 in your pocket after your jeans have been through the wash? This is sorta like that.
An inventory project by the Georgia Urban Forestry Council has discovered that the original estimate of 3,200 city-owned and managed trees inside the Decatur city limits is likely too low. Here’s the blurb from the GUFC’s newsletter…
When data collection was completed in downtown and the NW quadrant, it became clear that there were many more city trees than the 3,200 originally estimated. With only 40 percent of the area completed, we had inventoried nearly 60 percent of the budgeted number of trees! While this abundance of trees is a very good thing, we had to discuss with city staff options for how to complete the inventory since the total budget was for 3,200 trees maximum.
Some other interesting Decatur tree facts from the study…
- Of all 1,578 trees, 18 percent are flowering dogwoods, 15 percent are willow oaks, another 15 percent are crapemyrtles, and 9 percent are red maples; water oaks, flowering cherries, and Chinese elms account for an additional 4 percent each of the tree population in these two (2) sections
- 41 percent of the trees are less than 6 inches DBH, and 76 percent are less than 12 inches DBH, verifying that there have been a lot of new trees planted in recent years, and that many of the trees are small maturing varieties; many of these new trees have been established through the efforts of Trees Atlanta, a strong advocate for increasing tree canopy cover in the Atlanta area
- The largest tree inventoried is a 49 inch DBH water oak located on West Ponce de Leon Avenue
Photo courtesy of GUFC newsletter
h/t: Patch
Latest from Decaturish
Crepe myrtles are considered trees?
There is one in Savannah that must be 50 ft tall and is over 100 years old.
Interesting. The phrase “city trees” is used in the excerpt. I will probably be accused of nitpicking but most of these trees belong to private property owners who have certain rights protected by law. Decatur homeowners would be wise to question how this survey will be used by city officials.
I may be wrong but I believe the inventory is only counting city owned and managed trees — those along downtown sidewalks, in the cemetery, on municipal planting strips and medians, in parks and on the square, etc. Not trees on private property.
If that’s true, the post is a bit misleading. :-/ Have now clarified it a bit more.
Do not worry Chris. The GUFC document clearly states they are counting trees on public land.
There’s nit picky and there’s paranoid. No one is after your trees.
As the newsletter says, these are trees on right of ways and city property or on unplanted vacant areas.
Aw, man. I was hoping the city WOULD take responsibility for our trees. They grow way too fast and they’re bigger than me. In fact, the city can come encroach on my property as much as they want as long as they mow, trim, and maintain whatever they take. I’m all for communal ownership when it comes to yardwork.
Who is this Ivy chick all of these signs are warning about, and why is she killing trees?
She is choking them in a futile attempt to make them tell her where to find her other L.
The caption in the photo says the tree is 49 inches. Is that the circumference of the trunk?
49 inches DBH (diameter at breast height, 4 ft)