50 ability of 0.86. Responses ranged from 1 “doesn’t relate” to 7 “major reason” (Table 2). Several items were viewed as near the midpoint: helping making the neighborhood feel safe, looking alike, being the same size, and being different. All other items were viewed positively with making the street prettier being the most strongly supported item followed closely by cool- ing the street and the homes and the way they stretch over the street. In correlating the elements of what people think about the trees on their streets with characteristics of their neighborhood, several patterns emerge. Attractiveness of the street was moder- ately strongly and significantly related to mature trees on the street (r0.530, P0.000), landscaping people have in front of their houses (r 0.573, P 0.000), and cleanliness of the street (r 0.566, P 0.000). It is interesting to note that feelings about trees are influenced by larger issues related to the neighborhood. Mature trees on the street were also significantly related to many desirable characteristics of trees. Shade that cools streets and homes (0.321, P 0.000), the way trees stretch over the street (0.385, P0.000), and the large size of the trees (0.468, P 0.000) are all characteristics of mature trees. Increased property values (0.442, P 0.000) and lowering utility bills (0.375, P 0.000) are also a function of maturity. Aesthetic characteristics such as making the street prettier (r0.391, P 0.000), color in the fall (r0.290, P0.002), and the trees are the same size (r0.227, P0.016) were also correlated with maturity. Street trees were neutrally associated with making the com- munity feel safe despite research in Illinois that associates trees and grass with reduced domestic violence and fewer police calls (Kuo 2001). This particular community did not perceive a strong connection with this benefit of trees and this finding would beg further research in perceptions of safety (embedded like in this scale or explicit as a question). Positive Individual Tree Characteristics Respondents were asked 13 items about how much they valued specific elements of trees that might reveal those characteristics that might appeal in selecting replacement trees (Table 3). Re- sponses on the 7-point Likert-type scale ranged from 1 “not at all” to 7“completely.” This scale had a reliability of 0.89. From this scale, it becomes clear that there is less agreement on characteristics that influence a majority of homeowners. Clearly, fruit (large or showy and small or unimportant) were not desir- able for most of the respondents with mean scores of 2.69 and 2.70 and medians of 3 and modes of 1. Several items were neutral in both median and mode (4): showy bark for winter (3.65), large leaves (4.11), and small leaves (3.80). Results sug- gest that bark and leaf size is relatively unimportant compared with other elements. Likewise, texture of the leaves had a mini- mally positive mean of 4.11 and a neutral median of 4, but a mode of 5. By far, the most desirable characteristic in the view of respon- dents in this neighborhood is strong branches with a mean of 6 and median/modes of 7. Also, positive characteristics were (in descending order), the size of the trees as they mature, the way the trees stretch across the street, the color of the leaves in the fall, the various shades of green of different trees, and the dense foliage. Here we see a preference for large trees as was noted by Schroeder and Ruffolo (1996) in the Midwest. It seems reason- ©2008 International Society of Arboriculture Heimlich et al.: Attitudes of Residents Toward Street Trees able to accept the conclusion of Schroeder et al. (2006) that higher latitudes, cooler summer temperatures, and lower sun angles are involved. In correlational analysis, color of leaves in the fall relates at a statistically significant level (P < 0.001) to all other aesthetic individual characteristics. Fall color also correlates to all items on the “trees on my street” scale at moderately weak to strong levels. One correlation was expected (e.g., large to small fruit r 0.736, P 0.000). Aesthetic elements of shades of green, showy bark, dense foliage, and texture of the leaves all had moderate to moderately strong statistically significant correla- tions. There seems less concern for specific aesthetic character- istics such as foliage color, texture, showy bark, and foliage density despite the fact that trees are often marketed for such characteristics. Thus, it would appear that residents would not be concerned about a mix of tree species with varying aesthetic characteristics on their street. Negative Individual Tree Characteristics There are some maintenance concerns about trees along the street and to get at this, four very common criticisms were pre- sented and respondents were asked the degree to which each of these is a serious concern (Table 4). Responses ranged from 1 “not at all” to 7“serious concern.” The scale had a reliability of 0.89. In general, there were limited concerns about raking (3.32 with a mode of 1). Maintenance of the trees, as well as seeds and seedlings, were close to neutral at 3.94 but again with a mode of 1. Clearly, the largest concern was the damage to sidewalks from tree roots, which had a mode of 7 and a mean of 5.11. Overall, negative characteristics were viewed as neutral with a summated mean of 4.01. All items regarding negative characteristics of trees are strongly and significantly correlated at the P < 0.001 level. Maintenance concern correlations with desirable characteristics are more revealing. Maintenance concerns correlate statistically with cleanliness of the street and flowers or blooms, especially in terms of seeds and seedlings, maintenance of the tree, and dam- age to sidewalks. Clearly, residents see a potential downside to some aesthetic benefits. CONCLUSIONS Selecting large replacement trees that are attractive and provide an array of summer and fall colors, textures, and densities will ultimately be the characteristics that satisfy most respondents. Residents liked the large trees that make the neighborhood seem more mature. Such trees need to be trees that will grow to a size sufficient to arch across the street and provide the shade valued by residents. This is consistent with Schroeder’s work comparing attitudes toward street trees in the United States and the United Kingdom where U.S. residents preferred larger trees (Schroeder et al. 2006). There might be consideration given to a mix of faster-growing trees and larger, long-lived trees that may be slower to mature, because residents most value the shade provided by the trees and the various values related to the shade. Variations in foliage colors in both summer and fall were valued. Downtown Chicago has an interesting practice of planting no more than three trees of the same species in a row. Chicago’s practice seems as if it would meet the resident’s desires as expressed in their responses. A mixture of species would also provide additional species di-
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