Board Takes Stock of City Trees, Plants One More on Arbor Day

On the eve of Arbor Day, the newly appointed Tree Board gathered at City Hall to take a walk. Armed with a list of about 80 trees that had been identified as unhealthy and tagged for removal back in 2008, they set out on foot.

A few of the trees had already been removed, but many smaller, sick trees were marked with a white “X” for potential removal.

The Tree Board, co-chaired by Martha Scarbrough and Jane Remaley, wants to promote a healthy canopy by taking down those trees that are in bad shape in the city limits and caring for those that can be saved--as well as planting a beautiful new legacy. “This is new territory,” said City Engineer Jeff Mueller on the walk. “We’ve never done this active inventory before.”

The trees identified on the survey of trees on city easements were, by and large, not the elegant Southern Red Oaks or American Elms that are iconic in this Tree City USA. Dick Bare, a horticulturist on the Board, explains that many are trees that have been “topped” or wacked off strait across the top.

“Trees grow their own food. When you cut off the top—called “topping”—you kill them because they can’t create food,” he said.

Many of the trees look like they require ongoing maintenance because they were planted directly under power lines.  Bare recommends taking these trees down in favor yellowwoods or dogwoods—trees that won’t grow too tall.

Remaley, a Certified Arborist, points out the telltale signs on the many unhealthy trees: “Shoots next to the tree mean that it is making a last ditch effort to live,” she says. Scaly bark or mushrooms growing inside the tree are another danger sign.  Then there’s the improper pruning. “If you take away the leader, they don’t have anything to follow,” she says, referring to the dominant branch that grows upward.

But this is only the first step for the Tree Board, who say the next step will be looking at other trees not in the easements, securing a budget and more.

The next day was Arbor Day, a warm and brilliant one. The group gathered with other citizens to carry on a tradition: Planting a tree and letting area kids shovel the soil on to it. It was a ritual that gave their work real roots.

Want to take your own tree walk in Norcross? Check it out here.