Volume 4, Issue 2
Urban Tree Management
for the Sustainable Development of Green Cities
reviewed by Brian Thompson

In the opening chapter of Urban Tree Management, editor Andreas Roloff introduces the common problems associated with trees growing in the public spaces of cities. He quickly dismisses these by concluding: “…the positive aspects are always likely to prevail. The occasional inconvenience caused by trees should therefore be tolerated.”

This no-nonsense approach is typical of this collection of essays by numerous German experts that Roloff, the chair of Forest Botany at Dresden University of Technology, has collected. Of course – the authors would agree – trees are essential to cities!

While this attitude may represent an especially German viewpoint, I believe it will resonate with local arborists and others who care for the trees in city landscapes. In later chapters, the problems the editor initially presents, and many more, are addressed pragmatically and in considerable detail.

The result is an excellent reference book. All aspects of tree health, maintenance, and selection are considered. Potential issues with governing bodies and conflicts with human activities are discussed.  The educational, social, and public health benefits of urban trees are championed.

This book is somewhat rare in this country, so is for library use only.  However, each chapter includes an extensive list of references, most in English, and many that are readily available in print or online. For another positive review and perspective on the value of this book, see the article by Julian Dunster in the Summer 2016 issue of Pacific Northwest Trees. It's available in the library, or online via the Pacific Northwest International Society of Arboriculture website.

 Ask the Plant Answer Line:
Woodwind Reeds and Noxious Weeds
researched by Rebecca Alexander

Q: Synthetic reeds are used in making some woodwind instruments like oboe and bassoon, but what plants are the source for the natural reeds? Can the plants be grown in the Pacific Northwest?

A: There is an article entitled "Wind driven: A bassoonist nurtures reeds from rhizome to riff," by Diana K. Colvin, published July 21, 2005 in The Oregonian. Oregon Symphony bassoonist Mark Eubanks grows Arundo donax in the Portland area. He says that the plants grow best in areas where the temperature does not drop below 10 degrees. They are also sensitive to drying winds and ground freezes. They perform well in areas where grapevines would thrive. His reed-making business, Arundo Reeds and Cane, has since been sold, but the company website offers a history of how Eubanks started it. ...

This plant has been used for woodwind reeds for quite some time. According to "Arundo donax: Source of musical reeds and industrial cellulose" by Robert Perdue Jr. (Economic Botany, Vol. 12, No. 4, pp. 368-404), it may have been used in making flutes shortly after the late Stone Age.

The invasiveness of Arundo donax is essential to take into consideration. It is on Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board's quarantine list. It is also considered invasive in many other parts of the country, including California. If you can salvage reeds that are being removed from a natural area and put them to musical use, so much the better. But I cannot recommend cultivating a stand of Arundo donax for any purpose.  

This is an excerpt. Read the full question and answer in our Gardening Answers Knowledgebase online.

Through the Eye of a Weaver
Miller Library exhibit February 2 through 27 

New to the Library