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Has a study been done on why Miami-Dade county has so few trees around the homes? Other than areas like Coral Gables where destruction of trees is controlled, the rest of the county is surprisingly bare. The county has been planting trees along select roads, but other than that, nothing. It's quite interesting how a park or cemetery full of trees can be surrounded by homes without a single sizeable plant. Given the uniqueness of south Florida and the unbelievable variety of plants that can grow here, why are there so few? many other cities have tree-lined
streets and beautiful landscaping, why not Miami?
From what I ask my neighbors...they say it is a maintence issue and they view trees as liabilities in hurricanes. Their fears are that a tree will blow over on their house or cars...tear up sidewalks and paved areas...and of course God forbid force them to rake the "yard."
The city and county follow ordinances that mandate the planting of native trees in public areas and swales (like 75% must be native such as Live Oak or Mahagony), and the other 25% MAY be exotic (like Poincianas or other flowwering trees).
I think the FDOT has the same view as many residents, that trees are liabilities and more work. Then we have FPL with their power lines everywhere, preventing trees to be planted. We all know that what FPL wants, FPL gets...so basically we have special interests and lazy, careless citizens combining to make Miami one the US city's with the smalles tree canopy.
I have offered to plant trees that I have purchased on the neighbors' barren swale...and to maintain them...and most rejected it. I explained they were low maintenece, flowered...and would add value to their property and make the stree look nicer and feel cooler...but there were only a few takes. Sad...
Treemendous has been planting trees in some of the most desolate areas...but they can only do so much. The trend now is all native, and our native trees are, well...take a look at the Everglades...grasses and a few species. Most of the trees we have in the populated areas are NON-native tropicals and exotics (cocount palm, Mango, Royal Poinciana, Banyan, etc). On the public roads we now have the live oaks and mahagonies everywhere...these are slow growing trees that don't have the tropical feel (especially the Black Olive, found in parking lot swales-the ones that stain the cement and cars when it rains) and of course the natives are the cheapest ones to buy and require minimal maintence...so what can you do. I guess a trash tree is better than no trees. A few invasive exotics ruined it for the rest of them...
I don't understand South Florida's aversion to trees, especially when you see areas like the Gables and the Grove so beautiful with their trees, why not imitate that in "your" neighborhood? I think so many people who claim to love living here really don't, they may as well live anywhere else, because they don't spend time outside, walking around or apreciating the area...heck, they aren't even miffed about the treeless environment that they live in. Plus, it is so "hot" here, most of the lazy people won't break a sweat to get the mail much less make room for meaningful landscaping.
Funny about the swale trees, I had tried several times to plant two trees in front of my parents home, but they kept getting run over. In desperation I had to protect them with reflectors, and a cage, but Team Metro demanded that be removed. Eventually I got hold of two maple trees that a neighbor down the street wanted removed (but not destroyed) to make room for an addition. One was hit by an illegal alien who lost control, but the other one still stands. Believe it or not it is the ONLY street tree on their street, other than one coconut tree. In the yard there are gumbo limbos, oaks, pine, pigeon plum, black olive and exotics like the orchid tree, goldenrain, royal poinciana, tropical almond, crape myrtle, loquat, and ficus. Part of the yard is jungle-like with no grass and leaves as a ground cover. The hurricanes destroyed the sausage tree, bischoffia, mango and fiddle leaf fig trees. I know the liability thing too well, as their neighbor stupidly cut the roots off a ficus citrifilolia tree next to the fence, only to have hurricane Frances push it on their car. The crazy neighbors sued my parents for 25,000.00. I made the mistake of hiring our lawyer, insead of handling this myself. The case is STILL in court.
"I think so many people who claim to love living here really don't, they may as well live anywhere else, because they don't spend time outside, walking around or apreciating the area...and aren't even miffed about the treeless envirnment that they live in. Plus, it is so "hot" here, most of the lazy people won't break a sweat to get the mail much less make room for meaningful landscaping."
On my street and on that of my parents, I am the only homeowner who does landscape work. My parent's home is the only one with an irrigation system, and where nobody can park on the lawn (it's enclosed). As for FPL I wish they would get rid of those ugly erector-set power poles and stop butchering trees. Not even repeated hurricanes can convince them to do it.
I had the same experience of people running over my trees on my swale. The neighbors, the city garbage truck, you name it. So, what I ended up doing was planting coconut palms...because like in hurricanes, they can "blow over" or be slanted and they straighten out with a curve over time...of course, not the ideal shade tree, but you do what you can. I know my neighbors have tennants who come and go, so they don't care if the hit a young tree...but now they are big enough that they would cause damage if someone hit them.
I also but little plastic rings to put around the trunk of the trees at the base so when the city mows the swales, their weed wakers or blades don't scar the trunk of the tree, which weakens it in storms as they get larger.
Maybe you could try those white semi cirle things that people border their swales with to stop people from parking on them? Or were you saying that those are illegal now? I see them all over Hialeah (the tiangle shaped ones there). People put them out not to protect a tree but to reserve "their" parking space lol. Just dirt and weeds. I have also seen people raise the swale and put plants, but I think that was due to flooding issues and would seem to be ilegal to me, since now you are creating more of a water flood problem for your neighbors.
Sorry about that lawsuit, I can't imagine that being your parents liabilty...I mean in a hurricane if you park next to a tree...it is obvious what can happen. Act of God...anyways...take look at the new subdivisions now where there are zero lot lines and now swales...it is all paved over. There is no room for trees other than the skinny baby palms. It is like living in a giant parking lot. It would be nice if our local parks were a refuge for this suburban hell...but that doesn't seem to be the case at most parks.
We're living in Savannah right now and unlike many people who post in the forum, we can't wait to go home to Miami. We just spent last spring/summer in Chapel Hill suffering first from horrible allergies because the pollen just blew around in clouds (lots and lots and lots of trees there) and then suffering from the horrible heat waves - what I wouldn't have given for Miami heat and rain storms and breezes to break the heat and pollution. Anyway, just an aside.
I was an environmental studies major at FIU and we used to deal with this all the time. I think one of the main reasons is storm damage. It's true we all love the grove and all the trees, but when a major storm hits it can cause havoc. But also remember, historically, the Grove and the part of the Gables near the Grove/Sunset area is a hammock and thus has tons of natives and lots of trees. Many other parts of Miami were once sawgrass meadows and didn't have a lot of trees. We're also on top of limestone and not everything can dig it's roots down in every area.
Then you bring in a large immigrant community from places that may have also not had a lot of large trees in cities or where it just wasn't important and it becomes subjugated to the back burner.
It doesn't help that the trees that are planted are terrible exotics that just make a mess thus leading people to believe that *all* trees are bad. I remember after Wilma crossing from 72nd street on North Beach over Normandy Island and just one after another after another tree was down, ripping up huge chunks of sidewalk to go with it. It was terrible. We finally got over into our old neighborhood in Bayside (69th street off of Biscayne) and all the beautiful old trees in our neighborhood were down and our old next door neighbor had the ugly 60 foot pine tree from across the street through her roof and our old ficus and mangos which had been thoughtfully pruned had weathered sort of okay. But most people aren't thinking when they prune and FPL just hatracks trees and makes them ugly to the view anyway.
Anyway, tree planting is great but I think it needs to come from a city planners office and urban ecological planning has not been a strong suit I think for the city government. I hope it will change some day.
On my street it varies on to who does landscape work or not. But do some people not like to have a nice, natural yard? Some people down the street emigrated here from another country and their yard is almost completely concrete.... why would someone do that?
All my relatives and friends have been slammed into other people's houses during storms. Too much risk and maintenance to cause so much destruction. Besides, there are trees everywhere on government property down here.
Indeed, the tree question is one I have had for many many years... I don't understand why harsher fines are not given to those who cut beautiful mature trees down to lay down a paved driveway. It is such a sad thing to see... I personally like living in my own "little jungle" and always get compliments from people walking by, yet most houses in Miami proper have either no landscape at all, or a plain ol' st. augustine grass patch. Maybe I am biased about it, but I wouldn't be caught dead growing that grass! It is a waste of water resources, and no matter how much people care for it, in the summer it will inevitably grow brown patches and look terrible.
There are also so many wonderful incentives given by the city such as the Miami-Dade county adopt-a-tree program, where homeowners can get up to 2 free trees per property, and even renters can do so with the permission of the landlord, I just don't understand why they are not being taken advantage of. Oh, and by the way, some of those are fruit trees!
We're living in Savannah right now and unlike many people who post in the forum, we can't wait to go home to Miami. We just spent last spring/summer in Chapel Hill suffering first from horrible allergies because the pollen just blew around in clouds (lots and lots and lots of trees there) and then suffering from the horrible heat waves - what I wouldn't have given for Miami heat and rain storms and breezes to break the heat and pollution. Anyway, just an aside.
I was an environmental studies major at FIU and we used to deal with this all the time. I think one of the main reasons is storm damage. It's true we all love the grove and all the trees, but when a major storm hits it can cause havoc. But also remember, historically, the Grove and the part of the Gables near the Grove/Sunset area is a hammock and thus has tons of natives and lots of trees. Many other parts of Miami were once sawgrass meadows and didn't have a lot of trees. We're also on top of limestone and not everything can dig it's roots down in every area.
Then you bring in a large immigrant community from places that may have also not had a lot of large trees in cities or where it just wasn't important and it becomes subjugated to the back burner.
It doesn't help that the trees that are planted are terrible exotics that just make a mess thus leading people to believe that *all* trees are bad. I remember after Wilma crossing from 72nd street on North Beach over Normandy Island and just one after another after another tree was down, ripping up huge chunks of sidewalk to go with it. It was terrible. We finally got over into our old neighborhood in Bayside (69th street off of Biscayne) and all the beautiful old trees in our neighborhood were down and our old next door neighbor had the ugly 60 foot pine tree from across the street through her roof and our old ficus and mangos which had been thoughtfully pruned had weathered sort of okay. But most people aren't thinking when they prune and FPL just hatracks trees and makes them ugly to the view anyway.
Anyway, tree planting is great but I think it needs to come from a city planners office and urban ecological planning has not been a strong suit I think for the city government. I hope it will change some day.
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