Our two recent hurricanes have done a lot of damage to our urban forests - what have we learned?

 Hurricanes Melton and Helene brough flooding and wind damage to the human communities in their paths, but they also damaged urban forests. Florida's urban forests have already been weakened by the 2019 state-level preemption of local tree ordinances and research has shown that cities are already losing tree canopy.

Urban forests comprised of native trees support local butterfly and moth populations, intercept and take up rainfall which reduces flooding, and improves the quality of life of residents.

Homeowners, county and city staff, HOA board members, local politicians, and FNPS members in urban and suburban areas can all help to restore or even establish their local urban forest canopy.

The first step is to assess hurricane damaged trees and decide whether or not they can be saved, and, if so, how to do so. This IFAS book chapter describes the recommended process. If trees must be removed, or if the tree canopy has already been damaged and needs to be re-established, this IFAS book chapter describes the many considerations one must take into account when planting trees in urban and suburban areas.

Fortunately, researchers have assessed which trees are the least wind resistant with data from eight hurricanes striking Florida and Puerto Rico. The commonly-planted Laurel Oak (Quercus hemispherica) and Red Maple (Acer rubrum) were some of the most-damaged during these wind events. The same study provides rankings for wind resistance of our native species.



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