Street Trees Flourish in Structural Soil

摘要

Street trees rock! Besides being beautiful, they also do their part in offsetting urban impacts such as pollution and summer heat. So, it's important to treat them right. One way to do this is to provide them with optimal site conditions.The growth of many street trees planted in paved areas tends to be limited both by the size of the tree pit, and by the compacted soil that fills it. Professor Nina Bassuk, program leader of the Urban Horticulture Institute at Cornell University, notes,"Street trees in paved areas have trouble accessing enough space, water, oxygen, and nutrients to grow. As a result, they usually under-per-form." Since identifying this issue about 15 years ago, Bassuk and her team of student researchers have come up with one solution—a planting medium called Cornell University Structural Soil.~(TM) Street trees planted in it may live an estimated 50 years, rather than the 10 years typical for street trees in growing un-amended soil.