Dundas Trees Counts

 

Who

The tree count was organized by Environment Hamilton with support from local service groups, environmental organizations, businesses and individuals, as well as provincial and federal agencies. Several members of the Dundas Valley Tree Keepers were among the many community volunteers who examined and measured trees.

How

Previous tree inventories have been conducted by Environment Hamilton in five neighbourhoods in Hamilton. The Dundas trees counts followed methods developed by the Faculty of Forestry at the University of Toronto.  The Neighbourwoodssystem allows community volunteers to conduct professional-level inventories.

Volunteers, coordinated by Environment Hamilton employees, collected 34 pieces of data on each tree. These included information about: location, species, size (diameter, spread, and height), condition, and conflicts with wires, trees, structure or signs.

Results

The information below was abstracted from reports prepared at the University of Toronto.

	2007*	2008**
Number of trees examined	1,169	1,109
% of total that were city trees	38%	20%
Number of species identified	>60	>60
% of trees that were Maples	44%	21%
% of trees that were Norway Maples	19%	10%
% of trees that were Cedars	7%	27%
% of trees that were Spruces	8%	12%
% of trees that were native species	61%	63%
% of trees that were deciduous	79%	51%
Number of trees with trunk diameter >100 cm	24	23
% of trees in very poor condition:  - public trees                                                                    - private trees	21% 11%	24% 15%

 *  area bounded by Cross, Albert, Park and Queen: Albert, Alma, Cross, Elgin, Melville, Park, Parkside, Queen, Sydenham and Victoria Streets; included Dundas Driving Park

** area bounded by Little John Road, South Street, ,Tweedsmuir and Lynden; included Little John Park

Detailed results can be found in the full reports available on this website (see sub-menu items).

What does it mean?

Both tree hunts were a huge success, due to the participation of volunteer tree counters and the generosity of homeowners who allowed their trees to be examined. Typically, about one third of the trees in an urban forest are found in parks and on streets. More public trees than is typical were surveyed in the central area of Dundas and somewhat fewer in the South Street area. A broad variety of trees grow in these two areas of Dundas.

Maples predominate in central Dundas and Eastern White Cedar in the South Street area. Experts suggest that no more than 10% of the trees in a community should be of the same genus. A pest or disease epidemic that targeted maple or cedar trees would have a serious impact on the urban forest in the areas of Dundas included in the tree inventory.

A significant proportion of the maples found were Norway Maples. Norway Maples are popular landscape trees because they are tolerant of pollution, poor soil and difficult sites. Unfortunately, they are highly invasive. The seedlings of these prolific trees shade out native species in natural areas such as ravines and woodlands. Homeowners should choose native maples, such as Sugar Maple or Red Maple, or another type of native tree when planting new trees on their properties. These neighbourhoods are home to several very large trees. In addition to their heritage value, large trees are important to the environment. Benefits from trees are directly related to their size, especially their leaf area. Up to a quarter of the trees surveyed had serious defects (e.g., rot or large dead branches) that could present a potential hazard or become a liability. These trees need attention, ideally by an arborist.

Copies of both reports (2007 and 2008), which include information on city trees needing attention by an arborist, were sent to the City of Hamilton.

Results from the first tree count were presented to the Dundas Community at a public meeting in May 2008. Results from the second tree count (Dundas Trees Count Too) will be presented by Environment Hamilton to the public in 2010. The inventories provided key information on potential heritage trees for the 2009 Dundas Valley Heritage Tree Hunt. The inventories, along with the Heritage Tree Hunt, form the basis for the ongoing efforts of the Dundas Valley Tree Keepers to identify, document, honour, protect and propagate special trees in the Dundas Valley. The Dundas Valley Tree Keepers hope that residents of the Dundas Valley will learn more about trees through the tree counts. We trust that reviewing the tree-count results will inspire you to appreciate trees, maintain the health of the trees on your property and consider planting a native variety the next time you add a new tree.