Nature Notes – The Role of Trees

By Capilano resident Terri Lynn Perron - Wildlife Biologist & Master Naturalist for the City of Edmonton

Trees play a vital yet undervalued role in a city environment.  Please reflect on the amazing advantages of having a large tree in your yard as you tootle around this spring, pruning and yard cleaning.  It’s true some mature trees must be removed for safety or property damage reasons.  However, if you are considering cutting down an old tree for aesthetic reasons only, I would challenge you to first contemplate the gnarly beauty of an old master craftsman’s hands…or the faces of withered tribeswomen on National Geography.  With age and imperfection, come wonderful stories of survival and adaptation.

The benefits of the average urban tree are enormous:

• Consumption of 26 pounds of carbon dioxide on an annual basis, and conversion to oxygen.
• One large tree can provide a day’s oxygen for up to four people.
• Removal of 75% of polluting nitrates from the groundwater.
• Shading homes in the summer/sheltering from cool winds in the winter, thereby reducing energy bills.
• Raising property values by about 20%.
• Sheltering and feeding wildlife.
• Serving as an ecological corridor or stepping stone for birds and other creatures as they move from park to park.
• Beautifying our city and uplifting urban hearts.

How lucky we are to have such beautiful large trees in our neighbourhood!

"Do not be afraid to go out on a limb ... That's where the fruit is."- Anonymous