In conjunction with urbanization and its importance as a major driver of land-use change, increased efforts have been placed on understanding urban forests and the provisioning of ecosystem services. However, very little research has been conducted on private property and little is known about the structure and function of privately owned urban forests. This research examines the quantities and spatial patterns of urban forest structure (tree abundance, species richness, basal area) and function (tree and soil carbon storage) in private and public-right-of-way urban areas. We focus on the following questions: How does the carbon stored in urban trees and soils vary across parcels? How does the carbon stored vary as a function of development age? To answer these questions, we analyzed aerial imagery to classify canopy cover, sampled soils, and inventoried private and public right-of-way trees on 106 residential parcels within 14 neighborhood and home-owner associations with varying development age in Bloomington, Indiana. Structural and functional analyses of tree inventories were performed and soil carbon/nitrogen (C/N) levels were determined per parcel.
Results/Conclusions
Preliminary results demonstrate significant differences between residential associations’ age of development and tree abundance, species richness, and basal area. Older residential developments displayed larger parcel-level tree basal area and mean Diameter at Breast Height (DBH). However, this relationship was not as strong for parcels in which associations were developed during the 1950s and ‘60s, likely due to losses in old, large trees. The average soil carbon stored among parcels equaled 86.1 ± 2.4 (S.E.) Mg C ha-1. Newer developments displayed lower soil carbon stocks; however, no significant differences in soil carbon associated with development age were found at the 95% confidence level. Complete results including the carbon storage of trees and soils will be presented.