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TT: RE: Norway Maples
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>It would be interesting to know what the urban foresters on our list have
>observed over the years about this kind of damage in local vs. non-local
>trees. This is where being a good naturalist can really pay off over a
>long period. So, what have y'all observed?
>
>Cheers,
>
>
>Tom Kimmerer
>Forest Biologist
>University of Kentucky
>105 TP Cooper Bldg
>Lexington KY 40546
>Ph (606)257-1824
>Fax (606)323-1031
>Tkimmer@pop.uky.edu
>http://quercus.ca.uky.edu
Last April 1st, the Boston, MA area experienced its greatest April snowfall
ever. 25-30 in. of heavy, wet snow accumulated (equivalent to 4-5 in
rain), causing widespread power outages.
As most hardwood foliage was still in bud, it did not add to the damage.
Nonetheless, tree damage (primarily limb loss) was extensive. Many
early-successional stands of gray birch were nearly laid flat (most of
these have sprung back). Along Rt. 128, many old-field red cedars were
bent nearly double, and many of these have still not re-straightened--they
are perhaps the most conspicuous legacies of the storm.
In the suburb where I live, the hardest-hit species, by far, was Scotch
Pine (Pinus sylvestris L.). Often planted for their attractive form,
blue-green foliage, and rusty-orange upper bark, these trees' crowns were
generally unable to bear the snow's weight and often lost many or most of
their upper branches, or simply snapped off about halfway up.
In contrast, the native white pines and hemlocks, and the introduced Norway
spruces, suffered not nearly so much. My guess is that the near-horizontal
branching habit of the Scotch pines, together with their dense, stiff
foliage, made them accumulate greater snow-loads than these other species,
loads that they were less well-equipped to bear (winds gusted during the
storm to 50 mph).
A question: in their native Eurasia, are these pines particularly
susceptible to such damage? Do they occur in regions with heavy snowfall?
Thomas Palmer (Ophis@world.std.com)
79 Blue Hill Terrace St.
Milton, MA 02186
617-698-7759
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