156 Frank et al.: Street Tree Population of Greater Melbourne HISTORY OF TREE PLANTING IN MELBOURNE According to Spencer (1986), the use of planting material in Australia during the 19th and early 20th centuries was di- vided into two fairly distinct periods: 1850 to 1870 and the 1880s. The period 1850 to 1870 was distinguished by the use of fast-growing evergreens, primarily conifers and a small palette of native species, most notably southern blue gum (Eucalyptus globulus Labill.). These trees were promoted and used in both public and private plantations. The 1880s then saw a growing momentum toward the use of deciduous trees in streets. The Director of Royal Melbourne Botanic Gardens, Ferdinand Mueller, had a powerful influence on the selection of species for use as street trees in the new colony between 1850 and 1870. He was responsible for avenue plantings of silky oak (Grevillea robusta A. Cunn. Ex R. Br.) and flame- tree (Brachychiton acerifolius Macarthur and C. Moore) ad- jacent to the Royal Botanic Gardens. He also planted south- ern blue gum, for its rapid growth and drought tolerance, along St. Kilda Road and on the banks of the Yarra River (Spencer 1986). The more common species of tree used in Europe were not neglected, and by 1864, experimental avenue plantings of plane (Platanus spp.) and ash (Fraxinus spp.) were perform- ing well in the Melbourne climate and soils (Spencer 1986). Conifers were particularly common and nurseries of the time stocked a wide variety of conifers. In fact, the Royal Mel- bourne Botanic Gardens had become a propagation center for a large number of conifers and many were displayed in the Pinetum established by Mueller in the Gardens (Spencer 1986). Monterey pine (Pinus radiata D. Don) was also planted as experimental street tree plantings during the 1860s. However, by the mid-1870s, the evergreen conifers and blue gums did not gain the popularity that the deciduous trees achieved as a result of their lack of seasonal variation. Sub- sequently, elms, planes, and poplars were commonly used, as were palms, including Canary Island date palm (Phoenix ca- nariensis Hort. ex Chabaud) (Spencer 1986). By 1900, a greater range of plants was being used; how- ever, there was obviously a bias toward elms, primarily Dutch elm (Ulmus × hollandica Mill.) and English elm (U. procera Salisb.), because many fine examples of avenues of this ge- nus can be seen in Melbourne and many regional centers dating from this time (Spencer 1986). After World War I, the rapid development of city suburbs, with narrow streets placed in bushland settings, demanded a different approach to tree selection (Spencer 1986). Among the new selections were red-flowering gum (Corymbia ficifolia [F. Muell.] K.D. Hill and L.A.S. Johnson), flowering cherry plums (Prunus spp.), Norfolk Island hibiscus (Lagunaria patersonia [Andrews] G. Don), jacaranda (Jacaranda mimosifolia D. Don), sweet pit- tosporum (pittosporum undulatum Vent.), and Queensland brush box (Spencer 1986). After World War II, native plants became more popular, and eucalypts, callistemons, and mel- ©2006 International Society of Arboriculture aleucas were more widely planted. Exotic, deciduous trees were not excluded and pin oak (Quercus palustris Muenchh.) was also used widely in streets from this time. More recently, greater use has been made of honey locust (Gleditsia spp.) and ornamental pear (Pyrus spp.); however, London plane (Platanus × acerifolia [Aiton] Willd.) is still popular for avenue planting. Native tree taxa have also been extensively used to develop and extend wildlife corridors and to preserve Australian flora. Taxa such as lemon-scented gum (Corymbia citriodora [Hook.] K.D. Hill and L.A.S. Johnson), spotted gum (C. maculata [Hook.] K.D. Hill and L.A.S. Johnson), red-flowering gum (C. ficifolia [F. Muell.] K.D. Hill and L.A.S. Johnson), yellow gum (Eucalyptus leucoxy- lon F. Muell.), narrow-leaved peppermint (E. nicholii Maiden and Blakely), red ironbark (E. sideroxylon Wools), and red spotted gum (E. mannifera Mudie) have been widely planted (Spencer 1986). TREE INVENTORIES Complete tree inventories, and particularly computerized tree inventories, are a relatively recent introduction in municipal arboriculture. The City of Melbourne Tree Inventory of 1984, one of the first instigated in Australia, started with a rudi- mentary paper-based system and then progressed to the fully computerized geographic information system (GIS) in use today (Crowe 1992). This is the system generally currently favored by municipalities. There are many different types of street tree inventory, and most local governments have their own view of what exactly constitutes an inventory and what information should be collected. The purpose of this article is to determine which local governments have undertaken a street tree inventory and to collate and query that data so as to ascertain the dominant tree taxa used in the streets of Greater Melbourne at the beginning of the 21st century. Materials and Methods The cooperation and input of local government municipalities was a vital aspect of the project. All Melbourne metropolitan councils were approached to participate in the project. Of the 31 municipalities approached, 23 had completed some form of street tree data collection, three had undertaken part or incomplete street tree inventories and eight, primarily in ur- ban fringe areas, had undertaken no street tree inventory (Fig- ure 1). The data collected comprised tree populations from 62% (5,490 km2) of the approximately 8,800 km2 (3,520 mi2) that make up greater Melbourne. Because each municipality used their own formats to col- lect data, there was considerable variation between the data and field types used in the 23 data sets that were available. This variation precluded a detailed tree health and age inves- tigation and analysis, which would have provided useful in- formation about the overall condition of the street tree re-
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