Urban Forests: A Natural History of Trees and People in the American Cityscape

by Jill Jonnes

A celebration of urban trees and the Americans—presidents, plant explorers, visionaries, citizen activists, scientists, nurserymen, and tree nerds—whose arboreal passions have shaped and ornamented the nation’s cities, from Jefferson’s day to the present
 
As nature’s largest and longest-lived creations, trees play an extraordinarily important role in our cities; they are living landmarks that define space, cool the air, soothe our psyches, and connect us to nature and our past. Today, four-fifths of Americans live in or near urban areas, surrounded by millions of trees of hundreds of different species. Despite their ubiquity and familiarity, most of us take trees for granted and know little of their fascinating natural history or remarkable civic virtues.

Jill Jonnes’s Urban Forests tells the captivating stories of the founding mothers and fathers of urban forestry, in addition to those arboreal advocates presently using the latest technologies to illuminate the value of trees to public health and to our urban infrastructure. The book examines such questions as the character of American urban forests and the effect that tree-rich landscaping might have on commerce, crime, and human well-being. For amateur botanists, urbanists, environmentalists, and policymakers, Urban Forests will be a revelation of one of the greatest, most productive, and most beautiful of our natural resources.

Genres: Nonfiction, Nature, History, Science, Urbanism, Environment, Natural History

394 pages, Hardcover

First published September 27, 2016

Reviews

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating information but poorly organized - jumped around from topic to topic with no coherent timeline or subject categorization. In many places, would have appreciated additional information about WHY something was happening, rather than a mere reporting it did happen. Four stars for information on urban forestry; two stars for the writing.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book (while jumpy and sometimes slow moving) just the inspiration I needed. Reading about the rabble-rousy, seat-of-the-pants rise of Tree People in LA and how Boy Scouts were leveraged to bring back the American Elm made my heart swell and reflect on how I can make a difference in my own stick-to-the-rules no-budget urban forest. (Imma start MillionTreesBoston!)

[Andrew Blok · Rating 3 out of 5]

Here's a book that accomplished a few things for me that I hadn't been doing: learning about chestnut blight, Dutch elm disease and the infestations of borers that are killing trees across America. It was also cool to learn about the huge efforts that have gone in to making American urban forests healthy and the mistakes that have been made along the way. This book is obviously resting on a fortress's foundation of research and I certainly didn't feel like I was walking away with any major gaps in my exposure to America's cities and trees.

The decidedly personal issue I think I might have with it, is whether or not it could have left some of that research out. This is contingent on all the things that might detract from my experience of a book—how I felt while reading it, what I had on my mind, if there were other books I wanted to read at the time. Everyone in a while I felt a little lost in the primary accounts and sources and lost the through line. Maybe it's just an over-inclination on my part to wanting a neat narrative and maybe Jonnes did as well as she could to forge a narrative where there wasn't a readily obvious one.

Even if I lost steam from time to time, I genuinely appreciate all the research in this book. I am undeniably more knowledgeable than I was before. If I complain, I also need to say I'm glad I read it and I'm glad this book exists.

[Ellery · Rating 5 out of 5]

For tree lovers, this book reads like part thriller: horror and dread as the author details the loss of millions of American trees over the past century, most notably the American chestnut, elm and ash as foreign invaders decimated our tree canopy.
But then we have a call to action as the book enables you to see the empty (and as the book details, health-impacting) urban spaces as potential spaces for tree planting. And each citizen must get involved, watering their trees, advocating for trees as public policy and maintaining the trees, as well as being on the lookout for the Asian Long-horned Beetle.
As a quote at the end of the book says, "Quick, name a climate solution for cities which helps lower carbon emissions, protects vulnerable people who live there, and even helps students get better grades? Give up? The answer is urban forests, and you're not alone if you didn't come up with the answer. After all, most of us see trees as woven into our city streets as just a pretty, cinematic backdrop for urban life."

[Patty · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nonfiction book that describes itself as "a passionate, wide-ranging, and fascinating natural history of the tree in American cities over the course of the past two centuries". I'm about to take issue with that blurb, but first I want to say that I did enjoy reading it.

My main complaint about this book is that it's not particularly focused on urban forests. Out of 21 chapters, one is about the canker than killed off the American Chestnut, four are on Dutch Elm Disease, one on the Emerald Ash Borer (a bug that attacks ash trees), and two on Asian Long-Horned Beetles (which kill several types of trees, but are particularly fond of maples). These are all interesting stories, and Elms and Ash and Maples do sometimes live in cities, but cities are very much not the focus of these sagas of disease and resistance. Another chapter is on the discovery of the Dawn Redwood, a "living fossil" from the Cretaceous, whose only connection to the idea of "urban forests" seems to be that the discoverers were paid by Harvard University, which is in Boston, which is a city. There are also chapters on the (surprisingly contentious!) history of Arbor Day, Thomas Jefferson's tree collection, and the founding of America's various great arboretums (tree museums) including the New York Botanical Garden, the Arnold Arboretum, and the Morton Arboretum. All of which doesn't leave a lot of room for my poor street trees. "Historical Tree Diseases of the US" would have been a much more accurate title, but I suppose someone along the way decided that wouldn't sell as well.

I feel a bit churlish complaining so much though, because in the end the book is a fun read. Despite my proposed serious-sounding title, Jonnes is very much writing in the vibe of Mary Roach or Bill Bryson: she tells interesting stories in a familiar, entertaining way, and if they're a bit random and hang together more by virtue of their "cool to know" quality than their deep thematic connection, that's okay. The main point is to have fun. For instance, a chapter on how DC got its cherry trees is quite disconnected from the rest of the book, but is nonetheless a great story. I was most interested in the last few chapters, which finally got into the topic of actual urban forests, because that was what had attracted me in the first place, but they all were surprisingly engaging. I also have to be very grateful to Jonnes for introducing me to the NYC Street Tree Map, which actually allows you to zoom down onto any block in the city, click on a tree, and find out facts about what species it is, how big it is, how many pounds of air pollution it removes each year, and so on. I've had a lot of fun identifying the trees outside of my apartment.

I read this as an ARC via NetGalley.

[Henry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not really sure what to rate this.

On one hand, it paints an excellent picture of the history of urban trees and forestry in the US, and considerable research went into the writing of this. I enjoyed a lot of what I learned and Jonnes writes the earlier history of urban forestry (1860-1930s ish) in a way that is insightful and entertaining, full of big personalities that remain as critical players for decades. It at times takes on an almost dramatic tone, like these are characters in a lifelong story about greening America’s cities.

On the other hand, the rhetoric and critical framework is very…liberal. Jonnes leans a lot on neoliberal efforts and politics to paint a picture of contemporary American urban forestry in a way that is unsatisfying as analysis, in my opinion. A lot of that is prevalent in the history of urban forests, so naturally it appears in the text, but something about it left me wanting a different approach. An undercurrent of American exceptionalism is present throughout the entire book, Indigenous histories and cultural relationships to trees are virtually absent, and racist, classist attitudes of proponents of urban forestry go unexamined while still being acknowledged. There is also a great focus on ‘plant explorers,’ or men from the West who were paid, in the 19th and early 20th centuries, to wander into remote locations to “discover” plants species, often relying on local knowledge and labor while taking all the credit, which Jonnes ardently grants them.

So, all in all, an interesting thing to read while working in urban forestry with quality info, but in terms of critical approach, left me unsatisfied.

[Phuong Q. Le · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great information but the story telling is weak, slow, unnecessarily lengthy and disorganized. I didn't finish this book since I felt like I was reading entries from an encyclopedia.

[Kaitlyn Ratterman · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 lots of interesting facts but not a page turner.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Urban History is a brilliant study of the role of trees in the American city. Jill Jonnes weaves together the narratives of the dedicated people, the diverse species, and the invasive pests that have shaped urban forestry since the Revolutionary era. At times depressing, as it follows the loss of the American Chestnut and rise of Dutch Elm Disease, the work is also uplifting with its look at the scientists and activists who have changed our understanding of the benefits of urban forestry. Jonnes' study of the survivor trees of the Oklahoma City bombing and the 9/11 attack is particularly poignant. Ultimately, the reader is left with not only a better understanding of the history of urban forestry but is also inspired to become actively engaged in the continued struggle to maintain and expand our urban forests.

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Urban Forests is a great study of the role of trees in US cities. Jill Jonnes weaves together the narratives of the dedicated people, the diverse species, and the invasive pests that have shaped urban forestry since the Revolutionary era. At times it can be depressing as it goes though the loss of the American Chestnut and rise of Dutch Elm Disease. But it can be uplifting with its look a the scientists and activists who have changed our understanding of the benefits of urban forestry and battled to bring the American Elm and American Chestnut back.

[Timothy Riley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an inspirational book. Yes, it spent too much time on "tree people" and less on the trees themselves it still had some good information. It makes the case that the tree canopy in urban areas needs to increase dramatically. It makes some links to health outcomes, poverty, fitness, pollution levels and general community building. What would happen to a block in the city if a giant old tree was removed that would shade the neighborhood people below as they sat, talked, or played chess, etc? The result is a sun baked, increase in pollution and more people sheltering in their homes in the air conditioning. The social consequences would be devastating. And trees can cut cooling costs by tens of millions of dollars per year in major cities. In Phila I notice massive blocks of row homes in certain neighborhoods that don't have a single tree. These places have large front yards and no one thinks to put one in. baffling. Cities need to have massive information campaigns to push trees to the public and educate on how to take care of them.
Ailanthus was once a very popular street tree; i didn't know that. Now it is the third most common urban tree. The book also details the Chestnut Blight, Dutch Elm Disease and the Emerald Ash Borer. All of these things wiped out the most common streets trees of their time (Chestnut, Elm, Ash). All are examples of human impacts on the environment-the sixth mass extinction.
I did note some ethical problems in how these tree obsessed people behave. One was on page 293 when an Elm advocate in the early 2000's cut down all the mature Willow Oaks near the White House in DC just to plant some mature Elm hybrids. This goes against the entire nature of the book. There are sun baked blocks in DC that need trees desperately and they cut down beautiful mature trees for an experiment? The author just lets that one go without comment though.
I was inspired to visit Bartram's Garden again and found the oldest Gingko in North America and an orchard of cherries and pawpaws. There are truly gigantic Tulip Poplars. Next I want to visit Woodland Cemetery and then revisit the park in West Virginia with the preserved old growth forest. Who wants to come with???

[Peter Notier · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a fascinating history of forestry in American cities, from the early 1800's to the present - fascinating because of the variety of species discussed, their successes and failures, and the intersecting lives of the men and women who devoted their lives to urban forestry.

While most of us are familiar with the advocates for wilderness like Thoreau and Muir, Jonnes writes about the lesser-known "tree evangelists" of the cities such as Andrew Jackson Downing, John Davey and Charles Sprague Sargent, including women such as Elizabeth Scidmore, Helen Taft and Janet Noyes. As an aside, and of special interest, is Marie Beatrice Schwarz, whose work in the Netherlands on the fungal cause of Dutch Elm Disease drew a slow response due to "skepticism of 'female science'", a theme that can be traced through much of 20th century scientific research, from the decoding of DNA to the NASA space program.

While much of the argument for urban forests has been aesthetic, Jonnes also devotes chapters, like "Don't Trees Clean the Air?" (14) and "High-Tech Meets a Million Trees" (19) to the development of the hard science that quantifies the ecological and economic value of urban forests. Each chapter is devoted to a different aspect of the history of urban forestry in the U.S., but all are linked by the ultimate value of urban forestry in solving the problems of American cities, as expressed by Nigel Sizer, president of the Rainforest Alliance, "All you have to do is look out the window, and the answer is there."

[Andrew (Drew) Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

By this point most books I’ve read about trees are repackaging things I learned in other books. Not so here, as this is largely a history book about trees in the American cityscape. Filled with interesting and recurring characters (especially Eliza Scidmore, who deserves her own biography or two) who are responsible for landscaping Washington, New York, Chicago, etc. Unfortunately these steps taken to adding to the canopy are often foiled by the antagonists — beetles and fungi. Not having lived in the Northeast or Midwest, I was unaware of the devastating effects of Dutch Elm Disease and the Emerald Ash Borer. I’d heard of them. One of the most remarkable trees I’d ever seen was an elm tree n Nova Scotia. I dreamed of planting one but the gardener said that it was difficult to even find one to plant because of Dutch Elm Disease. This book makes plain both how normal my reaction to that elm was at one time, how devastating the disease was that killed so many, and how enthusiastic was the race to replace all the millions of lost elm trees. Not as rabid are the ash and chestnut fans, but no less devastating was their loss in the Northern states. And there is remarkable data to prove it! It is estimated that the Ash Borer didn’t merely kill trees but are responsible for the early deaths of over 20,000 people! You’ll have to read to the end to find out how…

[Mark McTague · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is part history of the nation's relationship with trees (particularly city trees) and a description of the development not only of the impetus to protect and enhance our urban forest (as the title says) but of the several threats and obstacles to that project, not least the role of ignorance in thwarting or delaying progress. It is also an object lesson in the limitations of human knowledge and capability, the power of natural forces (insects, bacteria, etc.) to shape both the struggle and the outcome, and the amount of effort needed to make a positive impact as well as the length of time needed. While the book highlights the role that scientific knowledge plays in this endeavor, it also shows how the hard evidence of the benefits of urban forests (physical and mental health, air and water purification, real estate values, etc.) have greatly helped to convince our political leaders of the wisdom and frankly the necessity of protecting and enlarging our urban forests. Especially noteworthy to me was the fact that many of our major cities had far more trees fifty years ago than today (D.C. having a 50% tree canopy in 1950 vs. 35% today, up from 27% a decade ago). Magic bullets? No. Instant relief? No. This is a long-term project and a vital one for all of us and our grandchildren's children.

[Luca · Rating 2 out of 5]

A dense history of street trees in America, where we learn about society ladies campaigning for the next decorative tree trend, unwitting extinctions from insidious imports, and the long journey to understanding the vital services trees can provide in urban landscapes. The chapters in this work sit together chronologically and somewhat topically, but lack a strong narrative flow. Where I would have preferred a storytelling that centered the trees' journeys, a lot of the main players were the naturalists, the lobbyists, the hobbyists, the scientists, and the politicians at play through the centuries of designing trees into American cities. The thing is, I picked this book up more for the trees, and less for the legacy of who got to claim they invented arbor day. Fortunately, I was still able to learn some interesting tree histories, so while the reading was a lot to get through, it wasn't an absolute waste.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have always loved trees, and this book made me want to plant more and more! "Trees--the noblest and proudest drapery that sets off the figure of our fair planet," wrote Andrew Jackson Downing in 1846, the Martha Stewart of the day when it came to landscapes. From the beloved Arnold Arboretum in Boston to the epic battles to save the Chestnut to quantifying tree benefits, this book is inspiring. The city that has done the most to keep their canopy? NYC.

And of course, as the author notes, the most important reason to plant trees: "In certain forward-thinking cities... officials were now viewing trees as an essential part of green infrastructure, incorporating them into plans to cool down urban heat islands, clean polluted air, and mitigate the scourge of polluted storm water while providing the bonus of making city streets more beautiful, more healthful, and friendlier to humans."

[Mitchell Friedman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book without recommendation from a remainder store. It is a single topic nonfiction, in this case Urban Forests in the United States. Its got a lot of the topics I expected. The death of the Chestnut. The Death of the Elm. The discovery of the Dawn Redwood. But it also had the growth of arboretums and the economic valuation of an urban tree. And history around major figures and companies in Urban Forests. And somewhere in this somewhat sprawling somewhat disorganized and un-directed book, I realized I had looked up detail after detail, item after item, picture after picture. Not a great book or a quick read. And someone knowledgeable in the subject probably would learn a lot less. But fascinating and readable and I learned a lot.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the early chapters, I read with mild interest about how certain tree species became popular and the creation of Arbor Day. The harrowing stories of disease and battles to prevent the extinction of certain species, particularly due to the introduction of monocultures, piqued my interest. Ultimately, the book reinforced with hard data and anecdotal evidence what I basically already knew, that trees mitigate air and noise pollution, as well as the effects of climate change, absorb storm runoff, provide shade, serve as mini ecosystems, and generally improve human health. Given that I'm in a country currently being governed by men who have no sense of civic and environmental responsibility, and very likely, no interest in trees, this book seems especially important.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and engaging book on urban forestry that revealed a lot of history that I wasn't familiar with. One key take-away, and cause for sadness given the current political situation is the importance of data-driven analysis and research to the preservation of our quality of life. Trees matter, and it's been a long battle to try to integrate our need for cities with our need for nature. Among the weird revelations for me was that George Bush was instrumental in funding this research, raising the departmental budgets tenfold after Reagan had totally defunded those departments. A highly recommended book.

[Michael LeClair · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. It relates the history of our urban forestry movement from the earliest days to around 2014. Urban Forestry, Green Infrastructure, Urban Ecology, Ecological Landscaping, etc. all have evolved since this book was written. These fields are evolving fast as the world realizes that urbanization is the new global reality. The book spent a lot of time on the various diseases and pests that have devastated our forests (e.g. Chestnut blight, Dutch Elm disease, Emerald Ash Borer, Asian Longhorn beetle, etc.) and how we dealt with them, and how we need to be prepared for future infestations that threaten our trees and ecosystems.

[Maggie Marek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really good info but sometimes pretty dry, it was a free listen on Audible so I can't complain! I read this one for the Out Our Front Door book club. It will be fun discussing with some likeminded folks. I liked learning more about the Emerald Ash Beetle because I remember that from growing up in the 90's and early 2000s. I also used the i-Tree app to figure out how valuable the trees in my yard are, a very neat resource. The connections to Chicago and the Morton Arboretum were also of interest. I'd say it's worth a listen if you love trees, but some sections are more interesting than others.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picked this book up after a visit to DC's tidal basin and learning the history of the cherry trees. It sat on my shelf for almost 3 years, and I'm kicking myself that I waited so long to read it because it is fascinating! The stories are woven together with the incredible people who made sure we weren't going to live in a concrete jungle, and those that fight in the background to keep our trees healthy and vibrant. So many of the stories hit home - loss of the elm, then the ash, and the amazing research by the Kaplans at the University of Michigan.

[Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

An interesting topic, and I particularly enjoyed the first half of this book which focused on early urban forestry in the U.S. But this book was poorly organized and given the sometimes dense amount of information that was presented, it eventually became a distraction and difficult to keep track of the places and the people. Unfortunately, I think this did a disservice to the brilliant pioneers of Urban Forestry in the latter half of the 20th century and into 21st century as well.

[Aleta · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a good, readable history of tree activism over time. If you want to understand the great losses we have had of important American trees such as the chestnut and elm, this is an excellent first source. But beyond history, Jonnes shows how the human hope and energy applied in the past can help us move forward with the monumental new problems we face including invasive insects and climate change.

[Phil · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love trees and this is a near and dear topic to me. I've been preaching planting replacement trees in cities long before I became a master gardener a decade ago. I wanted to love this book. But, I felt there was something "uneven" about it. Some chapters held my attention. Others were a long and boring drag. I kept putting it down. People who know me know that I can read a book every three days. The fact that this one took a month for me to finish is almost unheard of in my life.

[Jack Treval · Rating 2 out of 5]

While interesting, the book was disorganized, confusing, and contained many typos (e.g., confusing McKinley with Grover Cleveland). One would get a similar learning experience from just reading Wikipedia entries for different trees. I ultimately grew frustrated with the book and decided to read only what seemed to be the more interesting chapters - those about the introduction of now famous tree species, the economic and health value of urban trees, and the use of trees as memorials.

[MI A · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciated the final point made in the book: at the moment the are a decent amount of issue in a city that we are attempting to solve in a convoluted technocratic manner this despite the fact that many of these issues could be solve by planting trees (specifically trees that are well suited to an urban environment). The book also provides a good list of figures in the field and throughout history

[Christine Kenney · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting content, but slow moving and disjointed transitions. Instead of chronological order, this would have been easier to follow if it was organized by topic, i.e. "global plant collections," "invasive pests," "diseases," "involvement of USDA," "cost benefit analysis for urban forestry projects," "trees as memorials," etc.

[Jeramey · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of essays that provide an overview of the urban street tree, and more importantly the pests that assault them.

Informative, without a doubt, but it left me wondering about what can and will be done about so many of the pests. Are we screwed from globalization or will our trees and practices evolve?

[Lynne]

I find this book fascinating; however, it is extremely difficult to read specifically not due to the authorship, but due to the font, the layout of said font, and the paper it is printed on. I would enjoy reading this much easier if the layout/font/paper had been picked for legibility. Having a flush right margin makes any book/magazine article/essay difficult to read...