Journal article
Testing the accuracy of resistance drilling to assess tree growth rate and the relationship to past climatic conditions
L Orozco-Aguilar, CR Nitschke, SJ Livesley, C Brack, D Johnstone
Urban Forestry and Urban Greening | ELSEVIER GMBH | Published : 2018
Abstract
Assessing tree growth trends over time is a central but challenging aspect of urban forest management. The potential damage caused by invasive devices used in dendrochronological analysis is a common concern among urban foresters. Thus, the development of a less-invasive method for assessing tree growth rate faster that provides reliable results is clearly beneficial. In this study, resistance drilling (RD) profiles were compared with stem core assessments (Core) to estimate the growth rate of 78 trees of three species (Quercus robur, Ulmus procera, and Platanus x acerofolia). All studied trees were core-sampled in 2013 and then resistance drilled in 2015 at a stem height of 1–1.3 m in both ..
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Funding Acknowledgements
We would like to acknowledge the support facilitated by the Melbourne city council for providing financial aid, granting permission and getting access to data bases to select sampled trees. We wish to acknowledge the support of arboriculturalists William Dunlop, William Maccabee and, Chis Wright for the valuable assistance and knowledge shared in the field. We would also like to thank the Frank Keenan Trust Fund and the Madeleine Selwyn Smith Memorial Fund Scholarship for the research funds granted.