I'd Rather Be a Forest than a Street

What about a forest on a street? Street trees are one important part of what makes up the urban forest — all the trees in a community. Trees in backyards, parks, and other areas throughout the city are also part of the urban forest. Trees in the right places contribute to our health, wallets, and overall well-being. So be the forest on your street and advocate for trees in your community.

You can explore tree canopy information for Texas cities in the Urban Tree Canopy application, and pros can download the data to do their own analysis. The data provided in the app was produced from NAIP aerial imagery using object-based image analysis — a process that analyzes images by recognizing shapes. To make this map, I downloaded the urban tree canopy data for Bryan and College Station, processed it in ArcGIS, and then finished it up in Adobe Illustrator, using a muted background and light city boundaries to bring out the canopy. Inspiration for this month’s map came in part from the Simon & Garfunkel song El Condor Pasa (If I Could).

For more information about urban trees and their benefits, see our Urban & Community Forestry pages. For more on the health benefits of urban trees, see Healthy Trees, Healthy Lives. Take care of the urban forest, and it will take care of you.

Join the conversation!

Would you rather be a forest or a street? We say take the best of both worlds and be the urban forest. Check out tree canopy in @CityofBryan and @CityofCS in this month’s #MonthlyMapMonday. #MapMondayhttps://t.co/cwwXenrLMipic.twitter.com/QTBjI1mJNU

— Texas A&M Forest Service (@TXForestService) June 18, 2018