🚀 go-pugleaf

You have some good points.  My all means investigate what is growing in
nearby riparian habitats and see if those sites are similar to your own.

Frankly, the effects of a handful of trees on the climate are relatively
minor and very localized.  If I owned such property, the long term effect on
the world climate would not be my primary criteria for resource management.
More compelling criteria for resource management decisions would include
local view-shed value, wildfire control, firewood value, timber value, local
wildlife, local microclimate management, and overall resource management
economics.




"Martin E. Lewitt" <lewitt@swcp.com> wrote in message
news:93pjvj$1e3@llama.swcp.com...
> In article <q4H76.6052$jM3.237467@newsread2.prod.itd.earthlink.net>,
> PMDavis <pmdlandarch@earthlink.net> wrote:
> >The best way to find out which plants will thrive on a site is to observe
> >similar sites and see what grows there naturally.  The natural plants are
> >the ones which have evolved in that specific climate, soil type, wind
> >patterns, aspect, pathogen environment, and so forth.  That's why those
> >trees are already there rather than something else.  Cutting down the
> >native vegetation and replacing it with something else without a
compelling
> >good reason is a poor land management practice, and is generally poor
> >economics, also.
>
> Thanx for the advice that I snipped and will pursue.  On your above
> statement, while I generally agree with it, neighboring national
> forest, less than half a mile away, does have some deciduous trees at
> higher altitudes and at my altitude in riparian areas, I just don't
> know what species they are.
>
> The particular evolved species on my site may have won the evolutionary
> battle but may not be the best adapted for current conditions.  With
> the islands of green separated by high mountain desert here in New
> Mexico, selection may have been for fast recolonization after fires and
> for survival of fires.  Of course, we supress fires in neighborhoods
> now (most of the time), and my ridgetop now has riparian areas around
> my roof eaves and septic mound.  I've tried to preserve my ponderosa
> pines by trimming the understory and reducing the fuel accumulation so
> that the flames won't reach the crowns, I even have a notch in my roof
> for one of the ponderosas.  Their crowns are so high, that I fear that
> my house is more of a fire threat to them than they are to the house.
>
> Encouraging deciduous trees in my "riparian" areas would have other
> environmental benefits besides reduced the albedo in winter.  It could
> reduced my heating energy use in the winter and cooling energy use in
> the summer.  I assume that deciduous trees do less transpiration in the
> winter, so ground water would also be conserved.
>
>                             -- thanx again, Martin
> --
> Personal, not work info:         Martin E. Lewitt             My opinions
are
> Domain: lewitt@swcp.com          P.O. Box 729                 my own, not
my
> Hm phone:  (505) 281-3248        Sandia Park, NM 87047-0729   employer's.
>