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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1990-03-13 Park Board PacketCITY OF JEDI NA 4801 WEST 50TH STREET, EDINA, MINNESOTA 55424 612-927-8861 EDINA PARK BOARD 5:00 p.m. March 13, 1990 CENTER LOUNGE LOWER LEVEL, BRAEMAR GOLF COURSE A G E N D A • 1. Approval of the February 13, 1990 Minutes 2. Edina Gymnastics Association Report - Tom Wilson 3. Edina's Forestry Report - Tom Horwath and Solvei Swenson 4. Other REMINDER 5:00 p.m. Park Board Meeting at Braemar Center Lounge 6:00 p.m. Edina Advisory Boards and Commissions Annual Dinner Meeting i CITY OF EDINA PARK AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM DATE: March 7, 1990 TO: Park Board FROM: Tom Horwath, City Forester DATE: March 7, 1990 SUBJECT: Urban Forestry Report In this report I would like to discuss several topics of concern in urban forestry. They include diseased tree control, boulevard tree trimming policy, boulevard tree planting policy, and conclude with a general overview of Edina's current forestry program. DISEASED TREE CONTROL The foremost responsibility in urban forestry today is control of infectious tree diseases. As is widely known, the two most devastating diseases today are: Dutch Elm Disease and Oak Wilt. Each has it's own biology and recommended control procedures. With Dutch Elm Disease, the primary control measure is prompt sanitation of all trees infected. Last year 573 Elm trees were marked on public and private property. There were 402 on private and 171 on public property. With few exceptions, removals were achieved in a timely way. Last year, I initiated a method of prioritizing trees for faster removal of diseased elms. The trees were removed quickly to prevent the spread of infection into the roots and to adjacent healthy trees. This method will most benefit the trees in the Country Club area where many elms are left that may be root grafted to each other. Another popular form of Elm Disease Control, injection of Arbotect, is now questionable. Last year, if anybody asked me about this, I would have recommended it if they could afford it. Many boulevard elms in the Country Club area are injected which is paid for by home -owners. At the Tree Inspector Workshop this year, the main speaker was Dr. Alex Shigo. He is a past chief of the U.S. Forest Service and spent many years dissecting countless trees to study their defense systems. Currently, he owns Shigo Trees, Inc. and spends much time lecturing. Through his dissections, he has found that many previously accepted tree -care practices don't work and some could be even more harmful than beneficial to trees. Injections are one thing that he feels could be more harmful. Because of this, I can no longer recommend injections without reservations. I spoke to Mr. Tom Prosser, owner of Rainbow Tree Service, which does most of the injections on private and public trees in Edina. He expressed much concern over this. I suggested he get more involved with therapeutic pruning. This is a procedure that, simply stated, prunes out Dutch Elm Disease when caught at an early stage. It is a procedure that I've seen work in trees and extend their lives. Of course this method does not guarantee anything beyond removal of one infection. As stated, to be effective it must be done early in the infection stage and thus trees must be under close scrutiny. It is my hope that our own tree crew can be more involved in this procedure. They are aware of how this should be done. The thing that is most important is promptness. Time is very critical to make this procedure successful. OAK WILT Until last year, Oak Wilt control was treated the same way as Dutch Elm Disease. Trees were marked and ordered removed within three weeks. This control measure in many cases will only speed up the spread of oak wilt. And, with oak wilt, not all of the trees need to be removed. Only a certain percentage of them will produce spore mats and thus be infectious. Last year the City hired S. Kunde Co. to control oak wilt in the City. The methods he uses are recommended by the U of M. For further information on this disease, please refer to the report submitted by S. Kunde. Throughout this summer I will continue to monitor the effectiveness of his control procedures. TREE TRIMMING ON BOULEVARDS Should the City retain the responsibility of boulevard tree trimming or should the City pass this responsibility to the home -owner? Currently, with the City controlling boulevard tree trimming it is a large task involving notices, hearings, billing, record-keeping, calls, inspections, answering complaints. At times it would seem much easier to tell the residents that they are responsible for one or two trees they would like pruned rather than have a handful of personnel responsible for thousands of trees. On the other hand, what assurances would the City have that their trees are being properly pruned? How could the City protect their trees against being pruned at the wrong time of year, against the near -criminal act of topping trees, or against other harmful methods of pruning? Last year what I saw as the major problem in trimming was not enough was taken off, particularly with the smaller trees. I attempted to get Davey Company to "head up" the trees more. Instead they basically continued to remove more lateral branches above the curb -line. It fulfilled the conditions of the specs, but required that these trees be pruned at a much quicker cycle. The next priority area for trimming is the Country Club area. Basically these are mature elms. If the City chooses to retain trimming responsibility, my foremost recommendation is that a company is hired with known pruning practices, compatible with the wishes of the City and the residents. Of course what constitutes a good pruning job is a matter of opinion. As far as the health of a tree is concerned, the best pruning job is removal of dead -wood. There is much of that in the elms of the Country Club area. The trees could benefit the most from this. Other than this, if too little is cut off, the residents will complain and if too much is taken off, not only will residents complain, but it could be detrimental to the health of the trees. Somehow a happy medium must be reached. That's why it's so important to know the pruning practices of companies, to know they will have a crew that will be responsive to myself and residents wishes, rather than hiring a company based solely on low -bid. In my opinion, a good comprehensive pruning program would best be achieved by utilizing a responsible, knowledgeable tree company; the City tree crew, which could prune certain trees and avoid assessment hearings, and utilizing my own recommendations on which trees need pruning the most. TREE PLANTING It has been suggested that the elm tree be used as a replacement tree on the boulevard, particularly in the Country Club area. When I first heard this I thought "no, of course not". But subsequent argument in favor of elm plantings has swayed my opinion. There is no other tree that has the characteristics of the elm. It cannot be replaced by any other tree especially in this growing region. It's growth rate and form are unique. FI I believe that, with continued support of urban sanitation programs for diseased trees, and other methods for elm tree -care, the longevity of the elm as increased and with that in mind, it may be feasible to use elms as replacements. Added to this must be the understanding that these trees will still be susceptible to Dutch Elm Disease. I hope further discussion on this matter can be held at the Park Board meeting. EDINA'S FORESTRY PROGRAM - GENERAL OVERVIEW During the summer, besides marking diseased trees, I also receive many calls to inspect trees of many different species. Most of these calls come through the Parks and Recreation Department. Practically all these calls must be inspected personally. At times, with proper information given over the phone concerning the tree's symptoms, I can tell them what the problem is. It is only necessary for the secretaries in the Park and Recreation Department to get names and numbers and, if possible, a small amount of information. Many times I can determine what the problem is, as many of them are so re -occurring. I stay up on any control practices that I can pass on. If I don't know what the problem is, I have forms from the U of M that I can pass out to the residents, to fill out and send to -the U of M for further diagnoses. I thank you for your time and attention and I look forward to meeting you at the Park Board meeting. EDINA PARK AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT OFFICE PROCEDURE ON FORESTRY CALLS Resident calls in: Information is taken and a forestry form is filled out. Concern about disease: Tom Horwath, City Forester, responds with either a personal visit or a phone call. Dutch Elm Disease: Tree is marked for removal. Public tree is removed by City contractor. Private tree, the home -owner is given 21 days to'remove. Forester does follow-up on removals. Oak Wilt Disease: If Forester suspects Oak Wilt he refers it S. Kunde, Co. for observation and treatment. other trees: City Forester gives advice or refers the resident to U of M. Concern about trimming: Tom Horwath, visually checks for any "dangerous" limbs to have immediate removal by City tree crews. Trimming that is not urgent is placed on a list for trimming in the fall by contractor. For privately owned trees, resident is advised to hire a company. Calls about plantings: Currently calls on plantings in parks have been referred to Bob Kojetin. Calls on boulevard plantings are handled by the secretaries as to species recommended by the City and location of plantings. Calls about City ordinances: Are handled by secretaries. mFORESTRY DEPARTMENT ciTr of EDI NA J l 4801 WEST 50TH STREET, EDINA, MINNESOTA 55424 TO F'- ^97-8861 NAME ADDRESS DA TELEPHONE TYPE OF TREE BLVD PRIVATE PARK AREA 1 2 3 4 5 6 L/C L/I T/R FBN FBF COMMENTS DUTCH ELM INSPECTION- OAK WILT INSPECTION- REMOVAL- TRIMMING CLEAR VIEW- BOLT & CABLE - BROKEN BRANCHES- INSECT & DISEASE- SPRAYING FERTILIZE- STUMP REMOVAL- PLANTING OTHER - FORESTER'S COMMENTS T STUMP SIZEINCHES D.B.H. DATE COMPLETED