What is green space worth?

Tilman Park Tempe has some lovely features & some beautiful tall trees, including a Fig. Boulders are placed under the Fig so you can sit in the shade & watch the park.

Today I came across a wonderful article from the website The Conversation – “an independent source of information, analysis & commentary from the university & research sector.”  The article was written by Jason Byrne – Senior Lecturer/First Year Advisor at Griffith University & published 9^th January 2012.

Bain Playground Stanmore has lovely mature trees & a great streetscape.

“Jason Byrne is an urban geographer by training. He undertook his PhD at the University of Southern California (Los Angeles) where he was a fellow in the Center for Sustainable Cities. Jason is also a Senior Fellow with the Johns Hopkins University Institute for Policy Studies. He has previously worked as a town planner & environmental policy officer with the Western Australian government. Jason’s research interests include: urban nature parks & green-space planning; equity & fairness in planning (environmental ethics & justice); open space & healthy cities; ecological modernisation & sustainability; & climate change adaptation & urban resilience.

Because the The Conversation allows this article to be republished I thought it best if I did just that, rather than write a description with the web-link.

This article is very relevant to Marrickville LGA.  It’s great for me to be able to share what an expert thinks about the value of green space, especially in high-density urban areas & increasing urban consolidation. The use of bold is my emphasis.

“What is green space worth?

Recent patterns of residential development in Australian cities are threatening to overwhelm green space in our urban cores. Policies of urban consolidation have concentrated medium to high density residential development in inner ring suburbs where green space is comparatively scarce. And the zoning & development regulations of many local authorities actually allow a reduction of green space for higher density development – usually without any justification. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07293682.2010.508204

The Poplar trees along the Cooks River near Mackey Park Marrickville South make this a lovely cool & shady walk. There is always lots of bird song & when there is a breeze the leaves make a beautiful sound.

Everyone likes parks, but we may be greatly undervaluing their importance to our health & wellbeing, & to the wellbeing of other species. Rather than losing our green spaces, we should be assessing the evidence on their value & making informed decisions about how much green space we need.

To the casual observer, urban parks & green spaces might appear commonplace. But even a cursory examination of green space distribution within most cities shows that urban green space is neither uniformly accessible nor equitably distributed.

Generally the older & denser parts of many cities, which often were developed during the industrial revolution, tend to have relatively poor park access. But suburbs that have developed since the late 1950s have comparatively better access to various types of green space.

The spatial pattern of urban green space distribution reflects diverse factors linked to urban land & property markets, changing land use planning philosophies, histories of settlement & development, & in some cases, institutionalised racism and elitism.  http://phg.sagepub.com/content/33/6/743.short

Before the development of formalised park & recreation planning systems in the late 1800s & early 1900s, park & green space planning in the United Kingdom, United States, & Australia was relatively haphazard.

Some cities, like Adelaide, are park rich due to visionary administrators. In London royal parks were opened to the public, a product of elite benevolence.  Other cities, like Canberra, grew while new ideas about park planning gained popularity.

But some cities are park poor. Inner ring residents in Los Angeles for example, have less public park space per 1,000 residents than the size of a suburban backyard.  http://www.springerlink.com/content/g1277273381828l7/

So can we put a value on urban green space?

Research by John Henneberry, a Professor of Town & Regional Planning at the University of Sheffield, suggests people in Sheffield may be willing to pay sizeable sums to access high quality urban green space. http://www.shef.ac.uk/mediacentre/2011/public-willing-to-pay-more-for-greener-urban-spaces.html

This should not come as a surprise. From their early origins in the UK & US, parks were known to raise property values & people were prepared to pay a premium to live near them. Frederick Law Olmsted & Harland Bartholomew openly acknowledged this when they developed Central Park in New York.

Studies by John Crompton & others have found widespread evidence supporting the notion that proximity to green & open space pushes up property values.  http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13606710500348060  But reducing the benefit of parks & green space to a line on a ledger sheet can be both misleading & inaccurate.

Beyond an economic calculation, researchers have discovered that urban green spaces provide a wide variety of benefits. You don’t have to use these spaces to benefit from them. Parks can improve physical & mental health, ecosystem services & urban biodiversity.

Public health researchers like Ariane Bedimo-Rung http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0749379704003046 & Billie Giles-Corti http://jech.bmj.com/content/62/5/e9.abstract have found that living close to urban green spaces like parks & trails can increase urban residents’ levels of physical activity & reduce the likelihood of being overweight or obese. This reduces the risk of diabetes & several types of cancer.

Frances Kuo http://eab.sagepub.com/content/30/1/3.short & her colleagues have found that proximity to urban green space can lower the incidence of domestic violence, stress & depression & may even mitigate attention deficit disorder in children.

Ecological economists including Bolund & Sven Hunhammar http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921800999000130 have found urban green spaces also provide a range of free ecosystem services. They reduce noise levels, lower pollution, & reduce flooding.  And some ecologists have also found that urban parks can harbour rare & endangered species & promote biodiversity. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1618866706000732

We need strong evidence to support the density imperative, evidence that we presently lack. Until we can accurately gauge the green space needs of higher density residents, it may be folly to blindly pursue policies of urban consolidation.

In a time of economic uncertainty, when local councils are looking to develop “surplus” land assets such as “underutilised” park spaces, we need to carefully evaluate the true values of these spaces, before they are sold off to bolster ailing municipal coffers. To do otherwise could be more costly than we might imagine.”  http://theconversation.edu.au/content/4703/tracker

The link to this article is here – http://theconversation.edu.au/what-is-green-space-worth-4703

Because there is shade Wicks Park is a great place to be on a hot day.

The Phillip & Gladstone Street Pride Group

New Firewheel street trees in Gladstone Street Newtown. Once grown they will significantly improve the streetscape.

In February 2011 I wrote that I had been contacted by residents who nominated Phillip & Gladstone Streets Newtown as being an area that was hot & barren, used as a place for dumping unwanted household goods & in desperate need of street trees.  It was exactly as they described. I wrote, See – http://savingourtrees.wordpress.com/2011/02/03/desperately-needing-street-trees/

Residents had been in communication with Marrickville Council asking Council to plant street trees in this area. At first Council said they did not have the funds to put street trees in this location. However, after some meetings, & I presume seeing the location & how keen the community were, Council decided they would remove some concrete from the footpath & plant 4 African Tulip trees (Spathodea tulipera) & 8 Water gums – a total of 12 trees.  Needless to say the community were ecstatic.  I wrote about this here –  http://savingourtrees.wordpress.com/2011/05/14/street-tree-win-for-newtown-residents/

I made a 1-minute video of this area last February 2011 before the street trees were planted - http://bit.ly/ymnapV

In September 2011 concrete was removed, the tree pits were dug & new street trees were planted along both sides of Gladstone Street. However, instead of the planned 4 African Tulip trees, Council planted 4 Firewheel trees.

One of the verge gardens created by The Gladstone Street Pride Group

At some time before the street trees were planted 2 residents decided to see if other local residents would be interested in meeting to discuss how to green the area & make it more livable & visually appealing.  They took the plunge by doing a letterbox drop inviting residents of Phillip Street to the first meeting.  Much to their delight 20 people turned up.  7 meetings later & the original members are still involved, plus others who come on occasions.  Isn’t this wonderful.

They decided to call themselves ‘The Phillip & Gladstone Street Pride Group.’  They meet once a month, discuss ideas, report on progress with Marrickville Council, share news & spend some time cleaning the street of litter, weeding & watering around street trees & planting these areas with small plants & flowers.

The group has also spoken with a local business on Gladstone Street that has a stretch of garden bed next to the footpath.  The business has allowed the group to do what they like with this garden bed, so a couple of Jacaranda trees have been planted in the empty space between 2 other trees.  A mass of weeds was removed & the bed is in the process of being planted out with a variety of small plants.  Both the business & the residents are winners here.

Forming this community group has brought the local community together & other local residents have asked for the group’s help in getting more street trees in their section of the street.  People who did not know each other before do so now. The street is friendlier & helpful to each other & residents are learning how to propagate plants to keep costs down.  While we were in Gladstone Street another member of The Phillip & Gladstone Street Pride Group returned home from the train & joined us.

Alfalfa House (also known as the Enmore Co-op) at the corner of Enmore Road & Phillip Street are also supportive of this community initiative. They decided to have the graffiti removed from their side wall by painting a very nice colourful mural which the locals think has improved the streetscape immensely.  Eventually, the areas around the street trees outside the Co-op will also be planted out.

Another verge garden created by the Gladstone Street Pride Group

The Enmore Theatre is contributing by looking at ways to try to manage the litter that is dropped  by theatre goers as this often ends up in Phillip Street.  I think it is wonderful that local businesses have become involved & are supportive of the group’s ambition to beautify this area.

What was also interesting was that there was no dumped goods on the street whereas 12-months ago this area was the place to take your unwanted mattress or TV set.

One disappointment has been the removal of a number of Casuarina trees located between the back of the power station & the railway line. These trees were on Railcorp land & provided a block of green on the skyline blocking out the view of passing trains & significantly reducing the noise.  Railcorp have said that these trees will be replaced.

So what started as residents’ frustration at the barrenness & ugliness of Gladstone Street has now developed into a strong friendly group that is bringing both residents & local business together to make this area a much nicer place to live on a number of levels.

Marrickville Council have been very supportive of this initiative & had a couple of onsite meetings with the residents discussing options for street work that Council will approve.  Council has also offered to bring mulch to the street for the residents to use on their verge gardens.

I feel happy to be able to write about this positive outcome arising from community lobbying Marrickville Council & that they did plant much needed street trees in Gladstone Street. Council can be sure that these trees will be watered & cared for as they are already very much loved.

I am also happy to write that The Phillip & Gladstone Street Pride Group feel supported by Marrickville Council. This is such an important thing as they know that the work they do to beautify the streetscape will not be removed & they have been able to work with local businesses with confidence that any new initiative along the same lines will be supported by Council.

Local residents should not fear setting up a community group in their street because Marrickville Council have demonstrated that they are willing to assist, provide advice & help as needed.  Hopefully in time, more of these community groups will be established.  When people have pride in their area, there is more happiness & community cohesion.  Greening an area also has tremendous benefits on mental, physical & spiritual health of which I have written about on many occasions.

Well done to The Phillip & Gladstone Street Pride Group & to Marrickville Council.

Water gum street trees planted on the other side of Gladstone Street Newtown

The predominance of concrete surrounding this unit block in Phillip Street has encouraged graffiti tagging over the the past 12 months.

One of the world’s ancient trees died this week

The Senator - photo taken May 2011 by Anthony Scotti. Souce http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Senator_Tree_Longwood_Florida.JPG

At 36 metres tall (118 feet) this Bald cypress had an 5.5 metre (18 feet) diameter.  It had been standing in Big Tree Park Florida USA for 3,500 years.

Now it is gone. Dead. Burnt to the ground, even though it had a lightning rod installed to prevent it catching fire if struck by lightning.

From the New York Times, “Named for Senator M. O. Overstreet, who donated the land to Seminole County to use as a park in 1927, the Senator has long been a landmark for Floridians. It survived the logging epidemic, which claimed many of the giant trees that once stood in the county. (The Senator may have been spared because it was hollow, a condition that occurred as the tree aged.) It endured centuries of nasty hurricanes, including one in 1925 that lopped off 40 feet from the top.”

The Division of Forestry is investigating how this giant was burnt down.  They are considering arson, a lightning strike or wind friction.  The locals think the tree was a victim of arson – perhaps a lit cigarette tossed into the hollow.

A tree that reached 3,500 years of age would have been a seedling in 1512BC.

Just to put this in perspective, the following are some random historical events that occurred during this tree’s lifetime.  When Minoan culture was destroyed in 1450BC this tree was 62-years-old & 407-years-old when the Trojan War occurred in 1105BC.  The first Olympic games happened in 766BC.  In 500BC the wheel came to Great Britain & this tree was 1,012-years-old.  In 333BC Alexander the Great defeated Persia at the battle of Issus.   In 51BC Cleopatra & Ptolemy XII inherited Egypt. In 27BC Caesar Augustus became Emperor of Rome.  In 30AD when Jesus was crucified this tree was 1,542-years-old.  In 793 Ireland was raided by the Vikings.   Angkor Wat was built in Cambodia in 1140.  In 1348, 75-million people in Europe died due to The Black Plague.  In 1666 The Great Fire of London burnt the city down. In 1770 Captain James Cook landed in Botany Bay. In 1876 Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone. In 1945 the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima Japan. In 1957 Sputnik I became the first human-made satellite & so on.  In 2012 The Senator, one of the world’s ancient trees dies, aged 3,500 years. Cause of death unknown as yet.

“What remains now is a trunk, split in half, & a charred shard of wood that shoots 30 feet into the air. The remnants of the tree lie split, on their sides, black & sooty. Outside the gates of the park sits a little tribute of flowers with a sign reading “Rest in Peace Senator.””

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/21/us/disbelief-still-as-florida-reacts-to-burning-of-3500-year-old-tree.html?_r=2&partner=rss&emc=rss

Tree vandalism

Spot the tree - the tree in the background doesn't count. Click to enlarge

One of the main reasons why the urban forest in Marrickville LGA doesn’t get ahead is vandalism.  Last planting season Marrickville Council planted 2 street trees in empty tree holes in the footpath outside 358 & 362 Victoria Road Marrickville.  These had been without a tree for many years so it was good to see this area get a couple of street trees.

However, sometime after planting, the new trees had their branches snapped off & then to make absolutely sure, their tops broken off.

This area has a roaming vandal who goes out into the streets & vandalises new street trees in the very early pre-dawn hours.  I know this because locals have tried to get up early enough to catch the person, but 5am wasn’t early enough.

The vandal snaps off a branch here, another there.  A couple of days later, they return & break off another branch. When all the branches have gone, they break off the top just to make sure that both the community & Council gets their message …..they don’t want street trees in that area.  Must be quite an aversion to trees.

Perhaps this vandal doesn’t have anything to do with these particular street trees in Victoria Road, but it is the same technique… all side branches removed & the top snapped off.

I was thinking how the community & Council might tackle this to try & prevent the range of tree vandalism that occurs yearly to newly planted street trees by members of our community.

Bayside Council on Port Phillip Bay in Victoria have an ongoing problem with tree vandalism ostensibly for water views.  They found that the $20,000 fine wasn’t working so have upped it to $100,000, but first they have to catch the vandal.  http://bayside-leader.whereilive.com.au/news/story/time-to-act-in-bayside/

In 2007 the City of Melville Council & the Swan River Trust erected a 3-metre by 1.8-metre sign in front of native bushland on the Attadale foreshore where trees had been vandalized.  The sign says, “Vegetation has been destroyed by a selfish act of vandalism.” Between 2006-2007 the Council successfully prosecuted one person for vandalism & had 6 cases coming before the courts.  http://www.melvillecity.com.au/news-folder/a-sign-of-things-to-come-for-tree-vandals

North Sydney Council website says, “Trees shouldn’t die for a view! Every case of tree vandalism costs ratepayers! Depending on the severity of the case, the cost to the community can be more than $8000 for investigation, signage, replacement & remediation every time it happens.”  They offer a $10,000 reward for information leading to a successful prosecution with the penalty being up to $1,100,000.

North Sydney Council have a very nice & informative brochure about tree vandalism that can be downloaded from their website. It gives information about how & who to contact, has photos of different types of tree vandalism as well as information on the benefits of trees.  Perhaps Marrickville Council will do something like this one day as part of a greater community education program.  http://www.northsydney.nsw.gov.au/www/html/6786-tree-vandalism-policy.asp

Both vandalised trees are in this shot. Click to enlarge.

Waverley Council says the following about tree vandalism in their Urban Forest Policy, “Vandalism of public & private trees not only affects adjacent neighbours but also whole streets and blocks; the wider community also suffers through the gradual attrition of mature trees from the urban landscape. Council presently responds to incidents of tree vandalism by:

 

• investigating all reports & gathering information
• sending notification letters to residents requesting further information
• erecting signs in streets & parks highlighting the damage
• publicising significant & blatant attacks through local newspapers
• prosecuting through the courts wherever possible.”

Unfortunately I can’t find anything about what Marrickville Council says & does about tree vandalism as their Urban Forest Management Strategy document on their webpage is not available to download.  I’ll post more about this issue & what our Council & others do to try & manage tree vandalism another time.

Stanmore – opportunity awaits

The photo below is of public space that connects John Street to Stanmore Road in Stanmore.  Opposite is the historic & very beautiful Maundrell Park.

In this quite large space are 2 bench seats. Neither is in the shade.  There are 3 trees; one I forgot to see if I could identify & 2 Golden robinias.  The robinias are deciduous so this area would have perhaps only the shade of one small tree through the autumn & winter months. A lack of shade can still be an issue during Sydney’s winter.

There is an interesting horse watering trough that used to have an historical plaque, but that’s no longer attached.  Although the area is clean, it looks barren & unattractive.

I do not understand why our Council transforms non-park public spaces into hard surface spaces.  Perhaps it is for ease of maintenance or maybe for another reason, but with Marrickville LGA having the lowest percentage of green space in Australia, I think all opportunities should be grabbed & utilized.  It wouldn’t take much to transform this area into something that adds beauty, improves the streetscape, creates a visual continuity with Maundrell Park & becomes a place that encourages use by the community.

Even if underground services inhibited what could be done in this area, there still could be planter boxes & small gardens to soften up the area.

To say Maundrell Park is across the road does not cancel out the need to revitalize this area in my opinion. Busy Stanmore Road is not easy to cross on foot & the pedestrian crossing is a significant distance away.

Our Councillors have spoken about the need for places in public spaces where people, especially the older members of our community can get together & chat or play chess, backgammon or the like.  A table with bench seats under a shady tree would help make this area people-friendly & encourage use by the community.

I recognize that this space would have cost Marrickville Council quite a lot of money as brick paving & this kind of bollard doesn’t come cheap. However I really think this is a wasted opportunity to achieve something nice that compliments the neighbourhood & is more useable than just a pedestrian thoroughfare.

Brown, hot & barren

Street trees and property value

Red Flowering gum street tree - it looks good throughout the year, but becomes stunning when in flower. It's also a great source of food for urban wildlife.

Today I saw an auction sign that said, “Superb semi in tree lined street.”  The street is an avenue of mature Brush Box in & it is very lovely. The trees were used by the real estate agency as a selling point at the main point of contact, the sign outside the house. Even though potential buyers may not be able to inspect the property until it is open, they can look around the street & this may be enough for them to decide whether to return or not.

I’ve been saying for a while that a good street tree increases the value of your property so it makes economic sense to keep that street tree out front & look after any new street tree the Council has planted.

If a tree is vandalized on your street or even removed, this will have a direct negative impact on the value of your property.   How much?  It may be 30% of what your property is worth, that’s how much.

While writing this I found a 2010 article published in the Sydney Morning Herald titled, ‘Why a tree-lined nature strip can add 30 per cent to your property value.’   I’ve said this kind of thing before & watched people’s disbelief.  Not possible!  But it is.  It is also 2012 & as with anything, property prices are always rising so the value added by street trees would have also risen. It certainly wouldn’t have gone backwards.

Ask any real estate agent & they will confirm that most people will pay more for a house that is in a nice street, that is, a street that has good street trees.  30% more is an extra $25,000 for a property worth $750,000.

Some points from this article –

• Real estate agents agree that a good streetscape can add 30 per cent to the price of a property. There are many factors involved here but overall the verdict is quite obvious – a top-quality street is one that has big, leafy trees. There are few people who won’t appreciate that.
• Big leafy trees can often add more value to a house than an expensive renovation.
• High-quality street trees are a lasting contribution that developers can leave for future generations.
• A property that needs work can be changed, but you can’t change the location or the appeal of the street unless the council does something.
• …. tree felling definitely has an effect on the value of properties, particularly in areas known for their leafy character. http://www.bpginc.info/Why%20a%20tree-lined%20street%20can%20add%20to%20your%20property.pdf

Summer is here so if you have been lucky enough to have Council plant a new street tree outside your property, giving it a drink a couple of times a week over the hotter months & once a week over the cooler months for 2-3 years will pay you back in many more ways than just financially.

Tree lined street - a plus when selling a property

Can a tree provide a hangover cure?

“When rats are drunk they behave like humans, just like that.”  This was said by Dr Jing Liang, head researcher at the University of California who is part of a team researching 500-year-old Chinese hangover cure…..that comes from a tree.

The tree is an Oriental raisin tree (Hovenia dulcis).  It produces a compound called DHM (dihydromyricetin), which can prevent alcohol from intoxicating the brain. It does this by stopping alcohol from accessing the receptors in the brain.

This is where the drunken rats come in because testing of the compound is done on rats.  The poor rats were injected “with a dose of alcohol proportionate to the amount a human would get from downing 15 to 20 beers in two hours.”

As I understand the article, the rats that were given the compound sobered up within 5-minutes while the untreated rats slept for more than an hour or “were more likely to cower in the dark recesses of their maze.”  So would I after 20 beers!

The rats treated with DHM also have less hangover symptoms & less craving for alcohol.  Dr Liang said, “If from the beginning you drink alcohol with DHM, you never go to a high level of drinking.”  If it passes testing, it will be very useful for sobering people up who go to hospital Emergency Units suffering severe alcohol intoxication.

So perhaps a tree will help prevent alcohol problems in society &/or help those who have dependency problems – just another reason why trees are good.  http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-01-12/chinese-tree-offers-hope-for-alcohol-antidote/3770062/?site=sydney

This gorgeous street tree seen in Marrickville is called a Persian Silk tree or Mimosa tree (Albizia julibrissin rosea). Grows to 6-metres, is deciduous & flowers in spring. The leaves are green in Summer turning bronze in autumn. Produces brown seeds from summer to autumn. Can be propagated from seed.

Tree replacement in Stanmore

At the Council Meeting on 9^th December 2009 Councillors voted to have a large & healthy Lemon Scented Gum (Corymbia citriodora) outside 139 Cambridge Street Stanmore removed.  My post about their decision says,  “A new ‘more suitable’ tree will be planted in its place.”  See – http://savingourtrees.wordpress.com/2009/12/09/9th-december-09-–-last-attempt-to-save-street-tree-fails/

The tree was chopped down on 19^th January 2010.   It has not been replaced.

Because the tree cascaded over the road the loss of this tree had a large & negative impact on the streetscape in this location.  I hope that Marrickville Council do decide to replace this street tree as part of the 2012 tree-planting program.

2 planting seasons have passed & still this space remains empty despite that a new tree was promised for this location.

Beating the concrete

Seen in St Peters on a street where there are no street trees. It shows the need for green.

In another a treeless street in St Peters a factory has beautified the street by putting many pots plants outside on the footpath & even above the entrance.

There are even more pot plants to the right. The workers here told me that these plants make them feel better. I think it looks great.

Camperdown’s Avenue of Figs

Beautiful & historic Northwood Street Camperdown - an asset to Marrickville LGA

For years when driving along Salisbury Road I have thought I must stop & have a look at this beautiful street.  I never have.

Recently I was walking in Camperdown Memorial Rest Park & instead of putting my attention towards the church wall, steeple & canopy of trees within the church grounds as usual, I looked the other way & between the boundary trees, saw a street full of Hill’s Figs.  I realized that this was the other end of the street I had always meant to have a look at.

It is Northwood Street Camperdown, lined with beautiful mature Hill’s Fig trees that have created a gorgeous canopy over the street. It’s like walking through a green tunnel & reminds me very much of Laman Street Newcastle.  Northwood Street is peaceful, shady, cool & filled with birds so it sounds nice too.  I would guess the age of the trees to be around 80-years-old.  It looks like over the years some trees have been lost, but the overall feel remains.

Ausgrid (the new name for Energy Australia) have done something wonderful by putting up aerial bundled cabling eliminating the need to do any further pruning for power lines.  This was especially nice to see as it is recognizing the history & value of these street trees.

When doing a Google search to see if there was anything written about the Fig trees of Northwood Street I happened across the February 2011 edition of ‘Branch Cuttings’ – the newsletter of the Sydney & Northern New South Wales Branch of the Australian Garden History Society.  The lead article, ‘Wauchope’s & Newcastle’s figs to stay’ written by Eva Cassegrain & Stuart Read made for very interesting reading.  http://www.gardenhistorysociety.org.au/branches/sydney_&_nthn_nsw/branch_cuttings_34_feb_2011.pdf

The article lists where now historic Figs were planted around Sydney as well as in Wauchope, Sawtell & Newcastle & also mentions the mature Hills Figs that were removed last year from Wahroonga Railway Station much to the community’s dismay.

The main section of the article speaks about the median avenue of Hill’s Fig trees in Hastings Street Wauchope planted in 1938.  “Over the years 2007-2010 there has been an active public campaign to protect these against proposals to remove them due to complaints of damage by roots to plumbing on adjacent properties also because of invasive roots causing trip hazards, dislodging paths & walls. Wauchope received a wonderful christmas present when Hastings Valley Council decided to preserve the trees in the block from Young to Bain Streets.”   To fix the problems the Council installed a root barrier & planted gardens underneath the trees.  The before & after photos show a profound difference & illustrate the benefits of retaining these trees for the streetscape.

Unfortunately, at the time of writing the Laman Street Figs were thought to be safe from the axe. Not so, as the strong community opposition to Newcastle City Council’s decision to proceed with removing these trees continues.

In amongst this great article, the street trees of Northwood Street Camperdown rated a mention.  “Northwood Street Camperdown is another example of an avenue of Hills figs under pressure of removal, thwarted so far only by vigorous resident opposition.”  It was very nice to read that the residents have stopped the removal of these trees.  Northwood Street residents have benefited from these trees by raised property values, much beauty & wildlife & lower bills for cooling.  It’s worth a stroll down Northwood Street. I should have stopped here years ago.

I feel it is a shame we can’t have more of these trees planted in appropriate places around Marrickville LGA.  We do have a few suitable places that remain as barren areas.  A large canopy tree in these locations would improve the streetscape dramatically & add much needed green to the skyline.  Planting a Hill’s Fig or two in the vast areas of lawn in some of our parks would also be beneficial as the trees would provide shade & beauty.  Most people love large Fig trees & because they live so long, they become part of the community’s history.

Hills’ Figs can be managed by installing root barriers when planting them which increases the options of using them as street trees (in appropriate places).  The article also says, “San Francisco still uses them as street trees but with careful management including use of root barriers. Spain & the Canary Islands use Hill’s figs proudly in town squares, plazas & streets.  Beirut sports Hill’s figs in similar situations.”

The Australian Garden History Society have regular lectures, outings & publications.  If this newsletter was any indication, their publications should be great & of special interest to those interested in gardening, gardens, soils, trees & so on. You can find them here – http://www.gardenhistorysociety.org.au/  & the Sydney & Northern New South Wales Branch page - http://www.gardenhistorysociety.org.au/branches/sydney_&_nthn_nsw/

I made a short video of the Figs of Northwood Street Camperdown -http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j99XA6E6SLc

Google Earth map of Camperdown showing the difference between the canopy of Northwood Street & the surrounding area. The street trees make this area in the image quite leafy compared to many areas across Marrickville LGA.