How can urban trees survive ?

[jmx]

We now know a lot about trees, their association with plenty of bacteria, mushrooms (mycorrhizae), earthworms, the role of the decomposing organic matter that feeds them....

So, how can a tree survive in an urban environment, in the midst of concrete or grass, in a compacted and closed soil, with no decomposing organic matter ?

See https://efuf2016.wordpress.com/2016/03/17/resilience/

 

There are plenty of handsome urban trees. How do they do ?

 

 

Edited October 20, 2017 by jmx

[Khriss]

Trees can grow amongst rocky terrain, with almost no nutrient or soil to speek of, Obvs it's good if we look after the street trees that cost so much to plant. K

[jmx]

There is a book about that : Tree roots in the built environment

 

[Khriss]

Jmx - just bought it cos we are getting a lot of root issues n subsidence complaints ( nonsense ones ) so it gives me something to hit them with K

[fagus]

It is my view from travelling around that tree planting techniques have improved, better planting pits ,watering pipes tree compost. Many councils can no longer afford tree planting but some good landscape examples around Supermarkets.

Street trees search for opens spaces nearby to get water and nutrients.Some of the real old street trees in inhospitable surfaces are gaining nutrients from sewers; some sewers have tree roots like curtains and not doing great harm to the pipes as they have been like it so long.

[Khriss]

Not in my experience Fagus - but the Trees will prevail K