This page contains many resources to support you in the study and understanding of Arboriculture. You’ll find background information, a list of books & publications, as well as a list of links to other arboricultural web sites.
A little about trees in the urban landscape. Trees are some of the oldest and largest living things on earth providing great pleasure and many benefits to man. To understand why we need to care for trees and what kind of care they need, it is important to start with understanding the difference between trees in their natural habitats and trees in the urban landscape.
Trees evolved as grove organisms existing in cooperative groups. Trees that grow in a forest, or in a group, are under much different conditions than those which grow in an urban environment. A forest by definition is a whole ecological system where trees and other plants, animals, and organisms support each other ecologically.
When a tree grows as a solitary individual, the conditions are dramatically different. It no longer has the same support and protection of other trees and organisms, and its growth and behavior are unlike those found within a natural habitat. There is the added influence of roads, buildings and unnatural landscapes created by man.
The International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) was formed in 1924 to foster research and education worldwide for professionals in the tree care industry.
Plant Health Care (PHC) was developed in the 1980s to provide a more holistic approach to maintaining the care of trees and other plants in the landscape. The focus is upon the plant rather than specific pests or disease, and the key is a broad base of knowledge. This is a field which is changing every day as more research is done in the field of arboriculture.
Based on the information that has come about in arboriculture, the ISA has developed standards for proper pruning and care of trees as well as safety guidelines.
Trees – The Visual Guide – by Allen J. Coombes – A softcover field guide with more than 500 species of trees from around the world with color pictures.
Pests of Landscape Trees and Shrubs; An Integrated Pest Management Guide – Steve H. Dreistadt – A great guide for Integrated Pest Management.
Educate your children about trees:
I Can Name 50 Trees Today! – From The Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library™, this well-detailed (non-fiction) picture book provides a child’s guide to the basics of tree biology and identification in the whimsical, rhyming style of Dr. Seuss.
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