Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 48(2): March 2022 Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 2022. 48(2):113–123 https://doi.org/10.48044/jauf.2022.009 URBAN FORESTRY ARBORICULTURE Scientific Journal of the International Society of Arboriculture & Tree Measurements in the Urban Environment: Insights from Traditional and Digital Field Instruments to Smartphone Applications By Rocco Pace, Emanuela Masini, Diego Giuliarelli, Luca Biagiola, Antonio Tomao, Gabriele Guidolotti, Mariagrazia Agrimi, Luigi Portoghesi, Paolo De Angelis, and Carlo Calfapietra Abstract. Urban forests can provide essential environmental and social functions if properly planned and managed. Tree inventories and mea- surements are a critical part of assessing and monitoring the size, growth, and health condition of urban trees. In this context, the parameters usually collected are diameter at breast height (DBH) and total height, but additional data about crown dimensions (width, length, and crown projection) are required for a comprehensive tree assessment. These data are generally collected by urban foresters through field surveys using tree calipers or diameter tape for DBH and the electronic ipsometer/clinometer to measure tree height and crown size. Greater detail could be achieved using a digital instrument such as Field-Map, a portable computer station, to quickly realize dimensional and topographic surveys of trees and forest stands. Additionally, the incorporation of a LIDAR scanner into a smartphone such as the iPhone 12 Pro has made this device able to measure tree attributes as well as additional spatial data in the field. In this study, we tested these 3 different measurement systems in a field sampling of an urban forest and compared them in terms of measurable parameters, accuracy, cost, and time efficiency. Furthermore, we discussed the pros and cons of each measurement approach and how the resulted data can be used to evaluate ecosystem services of trees and provide guidance on tree management in order to reduce potential risks or disservices. Keywords. Digital Technologies; Field-Map; LIDAR Scanner; Smartphone; Tree Measurements. INTRODUCTION The urban forest includes all trees in the city and sur- rounding area (small and fragmented woodlands, street trees, trees in parks and gardens, and isolated trees) which represent essential green infrastructure within the wider urban ecosystem (Konijnendijk et al. 2006). Urban and peri-urban green spaces provide multiple benefits for people and the environment that are closely related to the degree of structural com- plexity of vegetation (Carrus et al. 2015; Tomao et al. 2018) and their accessibility and usability (Quatrini et al. 2019). Urban forest management is thus crucial to ensure a steady supply of ecosystem services over time (Miller et al. 2015). The maintenance of trees in the city needs careful planning that considers their value as a public interest (Doick et al. 2018), the costs of management (planting, treatment, pruning, and removal)(Vogt et al. 2015), and, in general, a broader and more comprehensive assessment of urban trees (Roman et al. 2021). Therefore, urban tree inventory is a required task for maintaining green spaces and assessing ecosys- tem services (Salbitano et al. 2016). Data usually col- lected are species, position, diameter at breast height (DBH), and tree height, which allow to assess tree growth and biomass (Ma et al. 2021). Additional information about crown dimension (length and diam- eter) is relevant to evaluate the effects of severe prun- ing on crown architecture (Tomao et al. 2015) and can be sampled to estimate leaf area (Nowak 1996). Measuring the size of trees allows to evaluate possi- ble risk conditions and adopt appropriate technical management (Pretzsch et al. 2021). In this way, it is possible to implement climate and pollution adaptation ©2022 International Society of Arboriculture 113
March 2022
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