If you were managing the urban forest on the UBC campus, would you
have condition assessments performed on all trees every year? Why or
why not?
Can you articulate three reasons why native plants are desirable in
urban forests?
Can you articulate three reasons why non-native plants are desirable
in urban forests?
How does an understanding of niche help us understand urban
plant/environment interactions?
What does it mean to "work with nature"? Would you consider all
goals accomplished with the assistance of plants examples of using
"nature-based solutions"?
Many bottomland species (for example, American elm) are very
successful urban trees even though we think of cities as being hot
and dry. Why is this?
If you have an older large tree in decline along a street, does it
make sense to plant a young tree beneath it to take its place when
it dies? What factors do you consider?
What is the difference between a cultivar and a registered
trademark?
If a species only grows in standing water or periodically inundated
sites in natural settings, what does that tell me about its realized
niche? What about its fundamental niche? Which one is more important
when selecting a tree species to plant at a given site?
Why might references about tree species characteristics developed
for rural environments require additional interpretation when
applied to urban environments? For example, The Silvics of North
America is a great reference about some trees--but are all the
characteristics described in this reference going to be true in an
urban environment?
How far do roots spread and how deep to they go? What do you need to
know about a tree or a site to make this type of assessment?
Describe 2 or 3 scenarios where knowing where roots are likely to
extend might be important.
What are some examples of indicator plants in urban settings? What
does the plant indicate?
Why are structural soils useful? Where would you use these soils if
you were designing a streetscape?
Who develops standards and why are they useful?
Is one production system better than another?
How would you determine if a certain species would be appropriate
for bare root planting?
Can you explain why the 2/3 rule is useful?
What is a root shank?
What are the most common limitations to tree selection?
What tree selection strategies would best contribute to increasing
genetic and functional diversity in an urban forest?
If you were in charge of a planting program for the UBC Campus, what
information would you need to gather about UBC Campus urban forest
before embarking on a species selection process?
What are some different perspectives on tree selection that you
might encounter in the professional world?
What geographic range would you use to define "native"? Why?