Townsend’s Community Forest Part 11
 | Author:
Patrick Plantenberg, Tree Board Chair
Townsend Tree Board Chair, Townsend Rotary Club |
Townsend’s Community Forest Part 11
Patrick Plantenberg
Tree Board Chair
Note: This is the eleventh in a series of articles from the Townsend Tree Board reporting on the status of the community forest in Townsend.
Last week, we discussed Townsend’s public tree maintenance over time. In 1990, tree maintenance on street trees was judged to be fair to poor. The Tree Board has pruned all the public trees in town over the last 19 years. As a result, Townsend’s trees today are now largely in good condition.
After severe thunderstorms, the number of branches or trees that fall on public property is less than unpruned trees on private property.
This week, we will discuss Townsend’s tree and stump removal process since 1990.
Townsend’s Tree and Stump Removal Process
In 1990, 15 trees were rated as dead/dying along Townsend’s streets. Stumps were not inventoried. In 2005, 28 trees were recorded as dead or dying and 33 stumps were listed for removal. The Townsend Tree Board started removing old stumps and any new stumps arising from large hazardous tree removals in the five-year tree care and maintenance plan from 2006-2011. Most of those stump removal locations were replanted. In 2011, 26 trees were recorded as dead or dying and only 12 stumps were listed for removal.
Since 2011, more large trees have been removed with grants the Tree Board has been awarded from the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation and the Montana Urban and Community Forestry Association. These grants allowed the Tree Board to remove large hazardous old cottonwood trees and green ash trees that were too close to fire hydrants, water shutoff valves, and/or tree roots that were lifting sidewalks.
Remember, the Tree Board has had a very limited budget for tree work and must secure funding from grants, money raised by selling trees, and/or money raised by pruning trees for private citizens. As a result of the removals, in the 2020 tree inventory, 52 stumps were identified. In the next 5-year tree care and maintenance plan, the Tree Board will be trying to secure funding to remove the majority of these new stumps.
Two large cottonwood stumps were left in the Heritage Fun Park playground. The Tree Board is sponsoring a contest to get those stumps carved into characters or animals for the kids’ enjoyment in the playground.
Next week, we will discuss the importance of and status of tree canopy in Townsend.
