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Forests
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Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate
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Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Urban Forestry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (24 February 2023) | Viewed by 41514

Printed Edition Available!
A printed edition of this Special Issue is available here.

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Thomas Rötzer

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Guest Editor
Forest Growth and Yield Science, School of Life Sciences, TU München Hans-Carl-von-Carlowitz-Platz 2, 85354 Freising, Germany
Interests: urban forestry; climate change; ecosystem modelling
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Stephan Pauleit

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Strategic Landscape Planning and Management, School of Life Sciences, TU München Emil-Ramann-Str. 6, 85354 Freising, Germany
Interests: green infrastructure; urban forestry; climate change adaptation; landscape planning
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Mohammad A Rahman

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Strategic Landscape Planning and Management, School of Life Sciences, TU München Emil-Ramann-Str. 6, 85354 Freising, Germany
Interests: urban forestry; tree physiology; ecosystem services
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Astrid Reischl

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Forest Growth and Yield Science, School of Life Sciences, TU München Strategic Landscape Planning and Management, School of Life Sciences, TU München Hans-Carl-von-Carlowitz-Platz 2, 85354 Freising, Germany
Interests: urban forestry; climate change; dendrochronology; allometric relationships
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Urban green addresses major urban challenges such as improving quality of life, preserving biodiversity, and adaptation to climate change. Especially urban trees as one of the main urban green components, are of special interest to enhance climate resilience of urban areas due to their capacity to moderate the urban microclimate, mainly through their cooling function which strongly depends on the trees’ evapotranspiration and shading capacity. On the other hand, tree growth and tree vitality, both of which strongly affect the provision of ecosystem services, are influenced by many control factors, particularly the surrounding microclimate, built urban structure, and tree species characteristics. We encourage topics from all fields, including experimental studies, monitoring approaches, or modeling studies, to contribute to this special issue in order to promote knowledge and adaptation strategies for improving the urban microclimate and for mitigating the negative impacts of climate change. Submissions on topics concerning patterns and processes of microclimatic regulation through urban trees are particularly welcome. Topics for this Special Issue may further include dynamics and functions of urban trees, and the effects of (micro-)climate and climate change on urban tree growth and their ecosystem services as well as studies on the growth patterns of urban trees.

Studies may address, but are not limited to the following topics:

  • Tree growth and vitality assessments across multiples urban space designs
  • The extent of cooling benefits from urban greenspaces at different spatial and temporal scales
  • Assessment of regulating, provisioning and cultural ecosystem services within urban landscapes
  • Understanding and mapping urban greenspaces across scales to promote multi-functional landscapes and resilient cities

Prof. Dr. Thomas Rötzer
Prof. Dr. Stephan Pauleit
Dr. Mohammad A Rahman
Dr. Astrid Reischl
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • ecosystem services
  • cooling potential
  • carbon sequestration
  • urban trees
  • climate change
  • microclimate regulation
  • growth-ESS patterns of urban trees

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Published Papers (11 papers)

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Editorial

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4 pages, 670 KiB  
Editorial
Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate
by Thomas Rötzer, Astrid Moser-Reischl, Mohammad A. Rahman and Stephan Pauleit
Forests 2023, 14(12), 2391; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14122391 - 7 Dec 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1632
Abstract
Urban environments are challenging places for urban greenspaces, especially for trees, which have the greatest impact on ecosystem service provisions [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate)

Research

Jump to: Editorial

22 pages, 2797 KiB  
Article
Structure and Ecosystem Services of Three Common Urban Tree Species in an Arid Climate City
by Alaa Amer, Eleonora Franceschi, Amgad Hjazin, Jawad H. Shoqeir, Astrid Moser-Reischl, Mohammad A. Rahman, Maher Tadros, Stephan Pauleit, Hans Pretzsch and Thomas Rötzer
Forests 2023, 14(4), 671; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14040671 - 24 Mar 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 4287
Abstract
Urban forests play a critical role in improving the quality of life in cities, but in arid environments, little is known about the potential benefits and growth conditions of different tree species. Our study aimed to fill this gap by investigating the relationships [...] Read more.
Urban forests play a critical role in improving the quality of life in cities, but in arid environments, little is known about the potential benefits and growth conditions of different tree species. Our study aimed to fill this gap by investigating the relationships between tree dimensions, above-ground biomass carbon storage, and shading potential in three common urban trees in the arid city of Jericho, Palestine, (i.e., Ficus nitida, Delonix regia, and Phoenix dactylifera). The trees were chosen according to their distribution in urban locations and tree vitality, with ages ranging from 20 to 90 years. Based on the results from tree structure measurements, the carbon storage and shading potential were calculated using the City Tree model. The results indicate a moderate to strong relationship between tree height, crown diameter, and crown volume for F. nitida and D. regia (R2 = 0.28–0.66), but no relationship for P. dactylifera (R2 = 0.03–0.06). The findings suggest that the analyzed tree species can considerably contribute to the potential benefits of trees in improving the climate of an arid city: D. regia shows a higher median of above-ground biomass carbon storage of 155 kg C tree−1, while P. dactylifera 91 kg C and F. nitida 76 Kg C. D. regia and F. nitida have a higher median of shading potential, (31 m2–41 m2), respectively. Information on the ecosystem services from urban trees and their relationships in terms of species, age, and tree planting urban location are very important for city planners, in relation to sustainable urban green spaces in arid cities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate)
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18 pages, 11481 KiB  
Article
The Effects of Tree Canopy Structure and Tree Coverage Ratios on Urban Air Temperature Based on ENVI-Met
by Haihua Wang, Yue Cai, Weifen Deng, Chong Li, Ya Dong, Lv Zhou, Jingyi Sun, Chen Li, Bingzheng Song, Fangfang Zhang and Guomo Zhou
Forests 2023, 14(1), 80; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14010080 - 1 Jan 2023
Cited by 22 | Viewed by 4725
Abstract
Vegetation configuration in residential districts improves human comfort by effectively moderating the thermal environment. Herein, the reliability of ENVI-met is verified by comparing the field measured with simulated data, including air temperature and relative humidity. The cooling effect of trees gradually increased with [...] Read more.
Vegetation configuration in residential districts improves human comfort by effectively moderating the thermal environment. Herein, the reliability of ENVI-met is verified by comparing the field measured with simulated data, including air temperature and relative humidity. The cooling effect of trees gradually increased with increasing tree coverage. Under the same coverage, trees with a tree crown diameter (TCD) of 3 m have the strongest cooling capacity, followed by trees with a TCD of 7 m, and trees with a TCD of 5 m have the weakest cooling capacity. The cooling capacity of a TCD of 3 m is considerably higher than that a TCD of 5 m and a TCD of 7 m. When the tree coverage ratio is 50%, the difference among the three TCDs is the largest. When the tree coverage is 50% or 70%, the cooling effect of TCD at 7 m is considerably higher than that at 5 m. For different canopy sizes and shapes under the same degree of tree coverage, only when the tree coverage is more than 50% and TCD is 3 m, the cooling capacity of a cylindrical shape is 0.2 to 0.3 °C higher than that of conical and ellipsoidal shapes. However, the difference between conical and ellipsoidal shapes when TCD is 5 or 7 m is not significant (∆Ta < 0.1 °C). Our results suggest that small canopy trees have a better cooling effect than large canopy trees for the same level of coverage. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate)
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15 pages, 6301 KiB  
Article
Daily Dynamics of Soil Heat Flux and Its Relationship with Net Radiation in Different Urban Riparian Woodlands
by Anze Liang, Changkun Xie, Jing Wang and Shengquan Che
Forests 2022, 13(12), 2062; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13122062 - 4 Dec 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1723
Abstract
Soil heat flux (G) not only affects the Earth’s surface energy balance but also models of calculating soil evaporation. A better understanding on the effect of timing, soil and vegetation on riparian G helps to improve energy balance closure and G [...] Read more.
Soil heat flux (G) not only affects the Earth’s surface energy balance but also models of calculating soil evaporation. A better understanding on the effect of timing, soil and vegetation on riparian G helps to improve energy balance closure and G simulation in riparian areas with various woodlands. This paper examined diurnal and seasonal variation patterns of soil heat flux in urban riparian areas, together with its relationship with net radiation (Rn) including midday G/Rn and the hysteresis phenomenon under the mutual influence of the timing, soil wetness and vegetation conditions. Study sites lie in the riparian areas of Shanghai with seven vegetation-covered conditions—grassland (CH), broadleaf evergreen woodlands with shrubs (CCO), broadleaf evergreen woodlands (CCH), broadleaf deciduous woodlands with shrubs (CUO), broadleaf deciduous woodlands (CUH), conifer with shrubs (CMO) and conifer (CMH). Hourly data of Rn and G on typical days in four seasons starting from 11/2020 to 10/2021 were obtained with automated data-logging sensors. Diurnal variations in soil heat flux were characterized as two patterns depending on leaf area index (LAI)—unimodal curves followed cycles of Rn in woodlands with low LAI (CCH, CCO, CH and CUO) and sinusoidal ones in woodlands with high LAI (CMO, CMH and CUH). Midday G/Rn was generally no more than 10% with slight variations in most woodlands across the four seasons, but upward trends in the grass and CUO were observed in the afternoon. They were found significantly correlated with SWC. For sparse-canopied riparian sites, hourly G was found to be significantly correlated with Rn and SWC in summer, whereas, for dense sites, the role of canopy characteristics overwhelmed soil properties. Equations were derived to estimate diurnal G from Rn, SWC and LAI. The G of all riparian sites was subject to hysteresis problems to Rn. Phase shifts ranged from one to eight hours in riparian sites and were positively related with LAI and SWC, mainly accounting for the second diurnal pattern of G. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate)
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24 pages, 4056 KiB  
Article
Tree Information Modeling: A Data Exchange Platform for Tree Design and Management
by Qiguan Shu, Thomas Rötzer, Andreas Detter and Ferdinand Ludwig
Forests 2022, 13(11), 1955; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13111955 - 19 Nov 2022
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 4876
Abstract
Trees integrated into buildings and dense urban settings have become a trend in recent years worldwide. Without a thoughtful design, conflicts between green and gray infrastructures can take place in two aspects: (1) tree crown compete with living space above ground; (2) built [...] Read more.
Trees integrated into buildings and dense urban settings have become a trend in recent years worldwide. Without a thoughtful design, conflicts between green and gray infrastructures can take place in two aspects: (1) tree crown compete with living space above ground; (2) built underground environment, the other way round, affect tree’s health and security. Although various data about urban trees are collected by different professions for multiple purposes, the communication between them is still limited by unmatched scales and formats. To address this, tree information modeling (TIM) is proposed in this study, aiming at a standardized tree description system in a high level of detail (LoD). It serves as a platform to exchange data and share knowledge about tree growth models. From the perspective of architects and landscape designers, urban trees provide ecosystem services (ESS) not only through their overall biomass, shading, and cooling. They are also related to various branching forms and crown density, forming new layers of urban living space. So, detailed stem, branch and even root geometry is the key to interacting with humans, building structures and other facilities. It is illustrated in this paper how these detailed data are collected to initialize a TIM model with the help of multiple tools, how the topological geometry of stem and branches in TIM is interpreted into an L-system (a common syntax to describe tree geometries), allowing implementation of widely established tree simulations from other professions. In a vision, a TIM-assisted design workflow is framed, where trees are regularly monitored and simulated under boundary conditions to approach target parameters by design proposals. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate)
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13 pages, 5745 KiB  
Article
The Influence of Plant Community Characteristics in Urban Parks on the Microclimate
by Yu Bao, Ming Gao, Dan Luo and Xudan Zhou
Forests 2022, 13(9), 1342; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13091342 - 23 Aug 2022
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 2893
Abstract
The hot and humid feeling of the urban environment enhances residents’ discomfort indices. Although the cooling and humidifying effects of plant communities in various urban parks are significant, there is still insufficient evidence for the effects of plant community characteristics on temperature and [...] Read more.
The hot and humid feeling of the urban environment enhances residents’ discomfort indices. Although the cooling and humidifying effects of plant communities in various urban parks are significant, there is still insufficient evidence for the effects of plant community characteristics on temperature and humidity. In this study, 36 typical plant communities in the Changchun Water Culture and Ecological Park in China were selected in the summer (21–23 August 2020) from 8:00 to 18:00 for three days when it was sunny and windless. We obtained plant community characteristics through field measurements and drone recordings to explore the relationship between plant community characteristics and the mechanism of temperature and humidity. The study observed that (1) the canopy density and three-dimensional green amount were significantly related to the benefits of cooling and humidification. When the canopy density is between 0.7 and 0.8 and the three-dimensional green volume is above 4 m³/m², the greatest benefit is achieved; (2) the discomfort index is between 0.6 and 0.8, and the three-dimensional green volume is 4 m³/m²–6 m³/m² minimum; and (3) the changes in temperature and humidity are different for different types of plant communities, which lead to differences in people’s perceptions of environmental comfort. The tree–grassland and tree–shrub–grass types had the most apparent improvement effects on comfort. The results show that in the design process of urban park plants, emphasis is placed on plant community configuration with apparent cooling and humidification effects, which can improve the comfort of tourists in hot and humid environments. The research results provide theoretical support for sustainable urban green space development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate)
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15 pages, 5493 KiB  
Article
Research on Thermal Comfort of Underside of Street Tree Based on LiDAR Point Cloud Model
by Xuguang Zhang, Yakai Lei, Rui Li, Aidan Ackerman, Nan Guo, Yonghua Li, Qiusheng Yang and Yang Liu
Forests 2022, 13(7), 1086; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13071086 - 11 Jul 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2405
Abstract
As a major part of the urban green space system, street trees play a corresponding role in adjusting the thermal comfort of the environment and alleviating heat island effects. The correlation between the morphological structure and microclimate factors in the lower canopy of [...] Read more.
As a major part of the urban green space system, street trees play a corresponding role in adjusting the thermal comfort of the environment and alleviating heat island effects. The correlation between the morphological structure and microclimate factors in the lower canopy of street trees was studied, using data that were captured with vehicle-borne LiDAR to model the morphological structure and geometric canopy features of six key street tree species in the built-up area of Zhumadian City, Henan Province. The regulating ability and differences of canopy geometry on cooling, humidification, shading, and Physiologically Equivalent Temperature (PET) were studied. Research shows that: (1) Canopy Volume (CV), Canopy Area (CA), Canopy Diameter (CD), and Tree Height (TH) have a linear negative correlation with air temperature, relative humidity, and luminosity. TH had significant effects on the air temperature and relative humidity (R2 = 0.90, 0.96), and CV and CD had significant effects on luminosity (R2 = 0.70, 0.63). (2) The oval-shaped plant (Platanus acerifolia (Aiton) Willdenow) had a strong cooling and shading ability, with an average daily cooling of 2.3 °C and shading of 318 cd/m2. The spire-shaped plant (Cedrus deodara (Roxb.) G. Don) had a strong ability to humidify, with an average daily humidification of 4.5%. (3) The oval-shaped and spire-shaped plants had a strong regulation ability on PET, and the daily average regulation values were 40.5 °C and 40.9 °C, respectively. (4) The CD of the oval-shaped plant had a significant effect on PET (R2 = 0.49), and the TH of the spire-shaped plant had a significant effect on PET (R2 = 0.80), as well as a significantly higher CV and Leaf Area Index (LAI) than other street tree species. Therefore, selecting oval and spire canopy-shaped plants with a thick canopy, dense leaves, and high CD and TH values as street trees can provide significant advantages in cooling, humidifying, and shading, and can effectively adjust human comfort in the lower canopy understory. This study is the first to apply LiDAR technology to the regulation of urban microclimate. The research results provide a theoretical basis and quantitative reference for street tree design from the perspective of outdoor thermal comfort evaluation and play a guiding role in the application of LiDAR to urban forestry research. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate)
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21 pages, 4665 KiB  
Article
Growth Response of Nine Tree Species to Water Supply in Planting Soils Representative for Urban Street Tree Sites
by Alexander Schütt, Joscha Nico Becker, Christoph Reisdorff and Annette Eschenbach
Forests 2022, 13(6), 936; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13060936 - 15 Jun 2022
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3629
Abstract
In urban environments, newly planted street trees suffer from poor site conditions and limited water availability. It is challenging to provide site conditions that allow the trees to thrive in the long term, particularly under climate change. Knowledge about the hydrological properties of [...] Read more.
In urban environments, newly planted street trees suffer from poor site conditions and limited water availability. It is challenging to provide site conditions that allow the trees to thrive in the long term, particularly under climate change. Knowledge about the hydrological properties of artificial urban planting soils related to the response of tree species-specific growth is crucial, but still lacking. Therefore, we established a three-year experimental field setup to investigate the response of nine tree species (135 individuals) to two common urban planting soils and a loamy silt reference. We determined and measured soil hydrological parameters and monitored tree growth. Our results revealed low plant available water capacities (6% and 10% v/v) and hydraulic conductivity restrictions with the drying of the sandy-textured urban planting soils. Therefore, tree species that are investing in fine root growth to extract water from dry soils might be more successful than trees that are lowering their water potential. Tree growth was overall evidently lower in the urban planting soils compared with the reference and differed between and within the species. We showed that using unfavorable planting soils causes severe, species-specific growth deficits reflecting limited above-ground carbon uptake as a consequence of low water availability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate)
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19 pages, 4454 KiB  
Article
Crown Shapes of Urban Trees-Their Dependences on Tree Species, Tree Age and Local Environment, and Effects on Ecosystem Services
by Eleonora Franceschi, Astrid Moser-Reischl, Mohammad A. Rahman, Stephan Pauleit, Hans Pretzsch and Thomas Rötzer
Forests 2022, 13(5), 748; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13050748 - 12 May 2022
Cited by 25 | Viewed by 7814
Abstract
Crown shapes of common European urban tree species differ from tree species to tree species and are modified by the age of a tree and its local environment. A tree’s crown shape has a great influence on the crown volume and thus on [...] Read more.
Crown shapes of common European urban tree species differ from tree species to tree species and are modified by the age of a tree and its local environment. A tree’s crown shape has a great influence on the crown volume and thus on the ecosystem service provision of a tree such as the shade area or the shade density. We used the data of 3852 tree individuals from eight German cities and the crown shape data of 528 trees for the species Acer platanoides, Acer pseudoplatanus, Aesculus hippocastanum, Fraxinus excelsior, Platanus × acerifolia, Robinia pseudoacacia and Tilia cordata to analyze tree structural dimensions and the crown volume and shade dependency on a tree’s crown shapes. Ovoid (57% of all tree individuals) and spherical (24%) crown shapes were mostly observed. However, columnar shape was observed for light-demanding R. pseudoacacia in close proximity of objects. The greatest shade areas were measured for spherical shape and the highest shade density for ovoid shape. Logistic regression analysis showed significant effects of age and distance to objects on crown shapes. Significant probability of crown shapes was found for different tree species, e.g., A. hippocastanum strongly showed half-ellipsoid crown shapes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate)
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25 pages, 4094 KiB  
Article
Effects of Climate and Drought on Stem Diameter Growth of Urban Tree Species
by Vjosa Dervishi, Werner Poschenrieder, Thomas Rötzer, Astrid Moser-Reischl and Hans Pretzsch
Forests 2022, 13(5), 641; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13050641 - 21 Apr 2022
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 3332
Abstract
Urbanization and climate change are two inevitable megatrends of this century. Knowledge about the growth responses of urban trees to climate is of utmost importance towards future management of green infrastructure with the aim of a sustainable provision of the environmental ecosystem services. [...] Read more.
Urbanization and climate change are two inevitable megatrends of this century. Knowledge about the growth responses of urban trees to climate is of utmost importance towards future management of green infrastructure with the aim of a sustainable provision of the environmental ecosystem services. Using tree-ring records, this study analyzed growth response to climate by stem diameter at breast height (DBH) of 1178 trees in seven large cities worldwide, including Aesculus hippocastanum L. in Munich; Platanus × hispanica Münchh. in Paris; Quercus nigra L. in Houston; Quercus robur L. in Cape Town; Robinia pseudoacacia L. in Santiago de Chile, Munich, and Würzburg; and Tilia cordata Mill. in Berlin, Munich, and Würzburg. Climate was characterized following the de Martonne aridity index (DMI). Overall, trees showed an 8.3% lower DBH under arid than humid climate at the age of 100. Drought-tolerant tree species were overall not affected by climate. However, R. pseudoacacia showed a lower diameter when growing in semi-dry than humid climate. In contrast, drought-sensitive tree species were negatively affected by arid climate. Moreover, the effect of drought years on annual diameter increment was assessed. P. × hispanica and R. pseudoacacia appeared as the most drought-resistant species. The highest sensitivity to drought was detected in T. cordata and Q. robur. A. hippocastanum and Q. nigra showed a lower diameter growth during drought events, followed by a fast recovery. This study’s findings may contribute to a better understanding of urban tree growth reactions to climate, aiming for sustainable planning and management of urban trees. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate)
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14 pages, 3448 KiB  
Article
Does Vertical Greening Really Play Such a Big Role in an Indoor Thermal Environment?
by Jiayu Li and Bohong Zheng
Forests 2022, 13(2), 358; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13020358 - 20 Feb 2022
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2448
Abstract
Little attention has been paid to indoor cooling compared with the surface cooling of vertical greening. The few studies on the indoor cooling of vertical greening are almost all conducted in a hot climate area with windowless building models, which is suspected to [...] Read more.
Little attention has been paid to indoor cooling compared with the surface cooling of vertical greening. The few studies on the indoor cooling of vertical greening are almost all conducted in a hot climate area with windowless building models, which is suspected to exaggerate the role of vertical greening in an indoor thermal environment. Through two improvements, this paper explored the realistic impact of vertical greening on an indoor thermal environment. First, we built models according to the actual window-to-wall ratio rather than a fictitious model without windows. Second, an annual cycle evaluation, considering both hot summer and cold winter, was used to replace the typical hot day. With the support of Envi-met and Kriging models, the results revealed that the existing research not only exaggerated vertical greening’s positive effects on an indoor thermal environment in hot seasons but also ignored its potential harms to thermal perception in cold seasons. These exaggerated results could easily cause the abuse of vertical greening in cities. In actual windowed buildings, the role of vertical greening in indoor temperatures is not always positive, and the positive effect is not as strong as previous studies suggest. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Forest and Urban Microclimate)
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