Urban Leaves Tree News You Can Use

Vol. 3 No. 3May/June 2016

Tree of Hope Planting on Earth DayApril 22

Instead of a monument of concrete or steel as amarker of our commitment to futuresustainability, Sustainable Indiana, a project ofEarth Charter Indiana, invited all Hoosiers to takepart in the "Tree of Hope" Project as a greenlegacy to future generations of forest lovers. On Earth Day, April 22,2016 at the LafayetteCourthouse a tulip tree (Indiana state tree) wasplanted to honor and celebrate Indiana's

Bicentennial. Mayor Tony Roswarski and MayorJohn Dennis participated in the commemorationand planting of our "Tree of Hope " as did a largegroup of St. Mary's third graders and membersof Tree Lafayette and West Lafayette TreeFriends.

Sponsored by Tree Lafayette, WLTF, Cities ofLafayette and West Lafayette, and TippecanoeCounty, this special event was well attended andenjoyed by celebrities and citizens alike.

Please visit the Lafayette Courthouse, east side, to view the tree andcommemorative plaque.

Arbor Day 2016

Upcoming Events

Fri, 5/20/2016 - 9amPruning - Middleboro andSwanee in Arbor Chase. Joinus!

Sat 5/21/2016 10am-3pmMind Boggling EventCelery Bog OutdoorAmphitheater

Wed, May-Oct-3:30-7pm Tree Friends will be at themarket 6/22, 8/3 and 9/7

Stop by the booth!

Tues 6/14/2016 - WLTFcommittee - noon - WL PublicLibrary. Join us!

Tues 7/10/2016 - WLTFcommittee - noon - WL PublicLibrary. Join us!

Quick LinksTo learn more about the TreeFriends, go to our website

Fun tree things for kids Tree Jokes KidZone Science-Trees

Before

West Lafayette Tree Friends celebrated ArborDay 2016 by planting 16 trees along South RiverRoad. This planting begins the first step inforestation of this long gateway to the city. WestLafayette Tree friends were joined by several cityofficials as they also celebrated the 25th year ofWest Lafayette being a Tree City USA. Yellowand blue ribbons were placed on the new trees inhonor of the Indiana State Bicentennial.

E.T Squad Gets The Job Done

About five years ago, the WL Tree Friendsand City of West Lafayette askedSecretary Don Wood and volunteer JohnMacDonald to form the ET Squad --Emergency Tree Squad. Although the TreeFriends regularly prune about 600 streettrees each spring, and another 600+ everyfall, we recognized a need for a quickerresponse to tree damage that arisesthroughout the year.

Citizens might call the Mayor or our Greenspace Administrator BeverlyShaw about a suddenly-drooping or broken branch, or wind damage to astreet tree. We might get notification of a stop sign or school visibilityblocked by tree limbs. The ET Squad then springs into action and in aday or two, they prune and repair the tree. Last year, for example, over100 street trees needed quick repair and the ET Squad took care ofthem promptly and efficiently.

The ET Squad also prunes trees for smallbusinesses, for example Dog & Suds,Village Bottle Shoppe, Rubia FlowerMarket, as part of the Tree Friends'"Pruning Partners" program with WestLafayette businesses.

In 2013, the city of West Lafayette honoredthe ET Squad as Volunteers of the Year.

May Crossword"Tree Punning"

Tree Facts

Urban Street Tree Benefits

Learn aboutthe emeraldash borer

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Thank you to recentdonors

James & Sandra BodenmillerChristine & James BrewsterCathy CampbellRuth DowdenSusan Jane EversCarl & Lynn GriffinAnn HuntMorris Rentals (business)Janet & Barrett RobinsonSieb & Janet SiebenthalCharlotte & David Warner

Approved Street Tree

After

In 2014, the Indiana Urban Forest Councilhonored the ET Squad as their choice forthe Outstanding Project in the state. Weare proud of those designations andhonors, particularly for the recognition itbrings to our group and hope that it gives

inspiration to other Hoosier cities for the care and maintenance of theirurban forests.

Essential Pruning Practices orWash, Rinse, Repeat

When pruning, always be mindful of the fact that each cut has thepotential of changing the tree considerably. There is art as well asscience involved in pruning, so look at the tree from all sides beforemaking a cut, proceed slowly, then step back and look it over again.This is the "wash, rinse, repeat" equivalent used in pruning.

The foliage and roots of a tree are vitally linked. If you remove too muchfoliage, the roots will die back as they receive fewer nutrients. A young,newly established tree can tolerate having up to 30% of its foliageremoved, a medium-aged tree 25% and a mature tree 10%. Heavyfoliage removal should not be done during times of stress, such asduring a drought. Never have a tree topped as it causes weak growth toemerge, massive cuts from which the tree cannot recover and greatlyreduces the health of the tree.

Trees have an amazing capacity to heal from injuries, especially if cutsare done at the proper points. When you look closely at where a branchconnects to the tree, you will see both a branch bark ridge (which lookslike a fold in the bark) and a branch collar (which looks like a swelling atthe trunk-branch junction). Cuts should be done as close to the branchcollar and bark ridge as possible without damaging them. The cells inthis area are specialists in resisting disease and forming scar tissue. If astub is left, it will die leaving ready access for disease and insects.

For a full explanation of pruning go tohttps://extension.purdue.edu/extmedia/FNR/FNR-506-W.pdf

What is a Tree Steward?

West Lafayette Tree Friends have expanded their love of city street

Not all trees are a good fit to be"street trees". A list of approvedtrees as well as landscape treesfor yards can be found on thecity website by clicking here.Here isanother example of anapproved street tree.

Swamp White OakScientific Name: QuercusBicolorHt.: 70 ft. Width: 70 ft.Fall foliage color: brown, yellow-brown, or reddish

Spring TreesBeautify

trees to include training on how to care for the urban forest. Severalmembers have taken the Indiana Community Tree Stewards course,eighteen hours of instruction about trees. We studied tree biology, treeidentification and selection, pruning and risk assessment, as well as howto explain the benefits of the urban forest. Fifteen hours of communityservice followed the course, which is offered three times a yearthroughout the state. We are part of nearly 1,000 volunteers who havebeen trained since the course was started in 1995. This training helpsour volunteers to be more effective when explaining tree care and otherissues to city residents. Keeping current on the latest research in urbanforestry is an important part of WLTF! Tree Steward training:June 8-9, 2016 La PorteJuly 9&16, 2016 Indianapolis August 11-12, 2016 Edinburgh

Find event details and register on the Indiana DNR calendar of events.For more information contact Carrie Tauscher at ctauscher@dnr.in.gov.

"The planting of a tree,especially one of the long-livinghardwood trees, is a gift whichyou can make to posterity atalmost no cost and with almostno trouble, and if the tree takesroot it will far outlive the visibleeffect of any of your otheractions, good or evil" - GeorgeOrwell

Hug a tree?

In a recently published book,Blinded by Science, the author,Matthew Silverstone, provesscientifically that trees do in factimprove many health and mentalhealth isaues. Google "Value ofTree Hugging" for more amazinginformation!