Oxford is a green city. But I only recently discovered that we are considered to be an "urban forest" -made up of all the city’s trees, shrubs, hedges, and woodlands. Everything is included, from garden trees, to green spaces at institutions and local authority parks. And together, we make up a forest.
On our local GIS, you can highlight the tree preservation order level, and therefore discover which trees near you have needed protection in the past. Non-inclusion on the map is no indicator that a tree is unremarkable. Only those threatened become preserved. Initially I was worried that the beautiful Lime trees that shade parts of the streets in our area weren't included, but that simply means that there is no need to include them, as they have never been threatened
We value our local trees. The Tree Policy in unequivocal. Anything cut must be replaced. No-one can have a tree removed because of aphids, bird droppings, perceived threat or simply not liking the tree. This brings a smile to my face. There are always people who take agin a tree. Sometimes there are trees that take agin a person. Sometimes we all manage to get along.
Which isn't to say that there are not flash points. Large, mature trees in urban streets are a particular risk and therefore are at particular risk. The Cowley Chestnut is the latest controversy. It's another upper storey office window visible large tree, like the ones that were taken down outside my offices. The dampening effect on mood within the office as the loss of the summer greenery, the winter tracery, was palpable. But when they were cut, we looked down and there were dark half moons of rot in raw wood of the severed trunks.
Large trees have a cultural value, they become members of the community, reliable presences in the local emotional geography of your home space. In China, the rescue, transportation, relocation and transplantation of mature trees to create geographical foci in new build areas has driven advances in technique and success. But it is still a riskier business than starting again with a set of little, unambitious trees that will grow politely, harmonise with the houses, and never menace the upper stories.
Working with the rotten parts of a tree, working with its dead and dying wood, its falling branches, its slump, the parts that are sitting down, is part of arboriculture. Letting a tree die rather than hastening its demise may be desirable in some cases. In bonsai, the art of including dead wood or working with the rot in a specimen is valued and named; Jin and Shari can even be created, for the beauty of the dead preserved in the embrace of the living.
Large tree have an economic value as well of course - they are ecosystem service delivery modules within the urban machine, and I have no doubt that the large lime trees are very supportive in stopping our upswelling and alarmingly proximate water table nudging too far upwards.
Interestingly, while researching our local trees, I found this gem hidden in a Q&A:
Can I plant a hedge or shrubs in the service strip? Usually not: a hedge or shrubs would also prevent public access and be unlawful. However, it would be reasonable for you to plant bulbs, summer or winter bedding plants as they would be classed as temporary (this does not affect your right to apply for a licence to plant on the highway if you wish).
So go ahead, and plant tulips and daffodils, pansies and primroses, or whatever you like a long as it's low and temporary in your verges.
On our local GIS, you can highlight the tree preservation order level, and therefore discover which trees near you have needed protection in the past. Non-inclusion on the map is no indicator that a tree is unremarkable. Only those threatened become preserved. Initially I was worried that the beautiful Lime trees that shade parts of the streets in our area weren't included, but that simply means that there is no need to include them, as they have never been threatened
We value our local trees. The Tree Policy in unequivocal. Anything cut must be replaced. No-one can have a tree removed because of aphids, bird droppings, perceived threat or simply not liking the tree. This brings a smile to my face. There are always people who take agin a tree. Sometimes there are trees that take agin a person. Sometimes we all manage to get along.
Which isn't to say that there are not flash points. Large, mature trees in urban streets are a particular risk and therefore are at particular risk. The Cowley Chestnut is the latest controversy. It's another upper storey office window visible large tree, like the ones that were taken down outside my offices. The dampening effect on mood within the office as the loss of the summer greenery, the winter tracery, was palpable. But when they were cut, we looked down and there were dark half moons of rot in raw wood of the severed trunks.
Large trees have a cultural value, they become members of the community, reliable presences in the local emotional geography of your home space. In China, the rescue, transportation, relocation and transplantation of mature trees to create geographical foci in new build areas has driven advances in technique and success. But it is still a riskier business than starting again with a set of little, unambitious trees that will grow politely, harmonise with the houses, and never menace the upper stories.
Working with the rotten parts of a tree, working with its dead and dying wood, its falling branches, its slump, the parts that are sitting down, is part of arboriculture. Letting a tree die rather than hastening its demise may be desirable in some cases. In bonsai, the art of including dead wood or working with the rot in a specimen is valued and named; Jin and Shari can even be created, for the beauty of the dead preserved in the embrace of the living.
Large tree have an economic value as well of course - they are ecosystem service delivery modules within the urban machine, and I have no doubt that the large lime trees are very supportive in stopping our upswelling and alarmingly proximate water table nudging too far upwards.
Interestingly, while researching our local trees, I found this gem hidden in a Q&A:
Can I plant a hedge or shrubs in the service strip? Usually not: a hedge or shrubs would also prevent public access and be unlawful. However, it would be reasonable for you to plant bulbs, summer or winter bedding plants as they would be classed as temporary (this does not affect your right to apply for a licence to plant on the highway if you wish).
So go ahead, and plant tulips and daffodils, pansies and primroses, or whatever you like a long as it's low and temporary in your verges.
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