Selecting and Testing Street Tree Cultivars

To improve street trees through better selection of species 1 and cultivars is an important goal of the Municipal Tree Restoration Program . Communities have been assisted by publishing “Street Tree Factsheets”, through workshops on “Selecting Street Trees’, and by research on performance testing of cultivars. Factsheets on 35 species or genera and 87 cultivars were based on published information and observations of arboricultural experts. The factsheets provide practical descriptions of appearance, advantages, limitations, and culture. The workshops introduced laymen and professionals to the factsheets and how to use them in municipal settings. More precise information is being obtained through performance tests of cultivars, which have been established at 20 locations so far and include 23 cultivars. Tests have been organized by service foresters of state forestry agencies jointly with community representatives, utility foresters, and Penn State University. These 50-tree plantings, supported financially by utility companies, serve also as incentives for community participation and as demonstrations of how conflicts of trees with wires can be resolved. The cooperative Municipal Tree Restoration Program has developed successful methods that integrate education, research, and service to communities, methods which have excellent potential for improving urban trees and tree care practices.