Study: Urban Trees Outgrow Their Country Cousins

yahoo ^ | Wed Jul 9, 1:04 PM ET

[demlosers]

LONDON (Reuters) - With its traffic and pollution, New York is not the most environmentally friendly city but scientists said on Wednesday it's a great place to grow trees.

Poplars in particular grow better in the Big Apple than they do in the tranquil countryside out of town.

"I know this sounds counterintuitive but it's true. City-grown pollution -- ozone in particular -- is tougher on country trees," said researcher Jillian Gregg.

Ozone is needed in the stratosphere where it protects against the sun's harmful rays, but too much of it lower down affects tree growth.

It is produced when primary pollutants are emitted and react under the influence of sunlight. But by the time ozone is formed, the air mass has moved from the city to rural areas.

While at Cornell University in New York, Gregg planted fast-growing cloned poplars in various sites in and around New York city and in the countryside of the Hudson River valley and Long Island to gauge the effects of pollution on urban and rural ecosystems. Her findings are reported in the science journal Nature.

After comparing their growth over three seasons, Gregg, who is now with the US Environmental Protection Agency (news - web sites) (EPA) in Oregon, unexpectedly discovered that the city trees thrived and grew twice as well as their country cousins.

Exposure to light, soil factors and precipitation could not account for the differences in growth, leaving ozone as the likely culprit.

[AFreeBird]

I recall reading an article about how poplars grow well in contaminated soil, actually cleaning the soil in the process. God/Nature provides.

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[Number_Cruncher]

Also there is a lot more carbon dioxide in cities from cars and such and carbon dioxide promotes plant growth.

[RonHolzwarth]

Nope. It is the higher levels of carbon dioxide that fosters faster plant growth. Ask any botanist about that!

[e_engineer]

Country trees

City trees

[Susannah]

Much of the Global Warming can be attributed to the "hot air" coming from the mouths of Liberals.

The green groups put out a lot of fancy brochures which are made from what?

[expatpat]

IMO, it's a combination of both the higher temperatures and the greater level of CO2, but mostly the former.

[ErnBatavia]

I remember being in Manhattan for a convention and taking a hotel van from the Marriot Marquis over to an affair at the Intrepid aircraft carrier museum.

Nary a sidewalk tree in sight, and I remember thinking to myself as I saw some chirren playing on the sidewalks that they might never get to see one.

I simply cannot imagine living on that "island".

[Jorge]

Much of the Global Warming can be attributed to the "hot air" coming from the mouths of Liberals.

That is a LOT of "hot air".
I NOW believe in Global Warming.

[wazoo1031]

Actually, I think it is caused by the "country" trees inbreeding with their tree cousins, that's why the sophisticated "city-folk" trees do better; there is more variety. That, and maybe the massive amounts of methane gas emitted on a daily basis in the city. Poor trees! Let's get them on a public health plan paid for by the citizen's taxes! After all, they ARE being vitimized.