Tree Demography and Monitoring

Long-term collection of urban tree data can provide valuable information for urban forest managers and researchers interested in performance of planting programs, tree mortality and growth rates, changes in species composition, and identifying dead and declining trees. We developed Urban Tree Monitoring: Field and Resource Guides to serve those interested in collecting long-term field data on urban trees.

Certain aspects of data collection – such as the reliable re-location of individual trees, clear delineation of which trees and site types are included or excluded from a study, consistency in recording tree Mortality Status, and precise re-measurement of Trunk Diameter – are all of great importance to longitudinal studies and are described in the Urban Tree Monitoring: A Field Guide. As a companion to the Field Guide, the Urban Tree Monitoring: A Resource Guide provides in-depth guidance for urban forest managers and researchers who want to design and implement a tree monitoring project.

The guides are also available in Spanish: Monitoreo de árboles urbanos: una guía de campo and Monitoreo de árboles urbanos: una guía de recursos. In addition, a 5-part animated series covers topics such as how to get started with monitoring, how to record Trunk Diameter, Mortality Status, and Tree Location, and how to manage field work.”

The guides originated from a community of practitioners and researchers with the Urban Tree Growth and Longevity Working Group of the International Society of Arboriculture. Co-authors include Forest Service researchers, university faculty, and urban forestry professionals, who collectively co-produced these documents to be useful for urban natural resource managers. These products also represent collaboration across FS mission areas: Research & Development (Pacific Southwest Research Station, Northern Research Station, and International Institute of Tropical Forestry), State, Private and Tribal Forestry (Region 5 Urban and Community Forestry, Washington Office), and International Programs (Colombia and Mexico).