Greenwood Consulting plays an important role in our Urban Landscape. The arborists at Greenwood routinely conduct street tree inventories for local councils. This involves looking at tree health, power line obstructions, resident complaints and empty spaces on nature strips. These empty spaces may be a potential area for another tree to be grown. Why is this important?
Because the health of our neighbourhood has been linked with trees and trees improve our health.
Image from City of Boroondara
Studies from reputable, science based sources have shown that:
Women living near areas that have had tree loss have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease than those living in areas where tree loss has not occurred.
Having 10 more trees in a city block, on average, improves health perception in ways comparable to a $10,000 annual income increase.
A lower crime rate is linked with an increase in the number of trees or more specifically tree coverage, in a neighbourhood. Numerous studies have looked specifically at the effect of trees as opposed to that of green spaces. Reasons are still unsure but one theory is that trees around houses reduce people's incivility, aggression and fear.
Trees may make us more generous and trusting. The students involved in this study experienced a sense of wonder by being in the presence of something larger than themselves.
So, the next time you think you would rather have that empty piece of land in front of your house to remain vacant, think again about the benefits of watching a young tree grow to passively provide you with many amazing benefits.
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