The Importance of Trees in Landscaping (2024)

FAQs

The Importance of Trees in Landscaping? ›

Strategically planted trees can provide much-needed shade during hot summer months, reducing the need for excessive air conditioning. In winter, trees act as windbreakers, minimizing heat loss and creating a more comfortable environment.

Trees contribute to their environment by providing oxygen, improving air quality, climate amelioration, conserving water, preserving soil, and supporting wildlife. During the process of photosynthesis, trees take in carbon dioxide and produce the oxygen we breathe.

Planting trees makes your landscape look better. They add curb appeal and increase your property value. Shade trees cool your home in summer and lower your utility bills. They shed their leaves in fall so that your home stays warmer in winter.

Trees Moderate Your Home Climate

In the summer, their shade and transpiration cool down our houses, and can save us upwards of 30% on the air conditioning bill. In the winter, the shelter of trees blocks cold winds, keeping the warmth in our homes, and reducing our heating costs by 25-50%.

They beautify our surroundings, purify our air, act as sound barriers, manufacture precious oxygen, and help us save energy through their cooling shade in summer and their wind reduction in winter.

You bet. A mature tree in the front of a house increases a home's sales price by an average of $7,130. If that tree is part of a well-kept landscape, it could increase your home value by 5% to 11%. That means that you can expect to see about a 109% return on every $1 you invest in your landscaping.

Trees give off oxygen that we need to breathe. Trees reduce the amount of storm water runoff, which reduces erosion and pollution in our waterways and may reduce the effects of flooding. Many species of wildlife depend on trees for habitat. Trees provide food, protection, and homes for many birds and mammals.

There would be fewer insects, plants, animals and fungi as trees provide their habitat. Without trees there would be a wave of extinctions of several different species. The climate would be different. Without trees, areas would become much drier, potentially causing drought.

Trees absorb odors and pollutant gases (nitrogen oxides, ammonia, sulfur dioxide and ozone) and filter particulates out of the air by trapping them on their leaves and bark. In one year an acre of mature trees can provide enough oxygen for 18 people.

Why do landscapers put mulch around trees? ›

Mulching decreases competition from the grass. Grass robs water and nutrients from the tree's root development and delays its establishment. A properly placed mulch ring helps conserve moisture and cools the soil aiding in root growth.

TOO MANY SHRUBS AND TREES IN THE FRONT YARD

You want to be able to see your home and find your front door walkway! so don't overplant trees, especially if you have a small front yard. Landscaping can depend on the size of your front yard; typically one tree will do.

Bottom Line: When it comes to carbon capture, trees are the clear winners in terms of effectiveness. However, grasses also play an important role in carbon sequestration, particularly when it comes to storing carbon in the soil.

Having trees too close to your house can present a number of safety issues that range from minor to major—the minor issues typically include the environment in the area of your home, while problems that are more serious include structural damage done by falling branches or even falling trees.

Trees cause the moisture in soil to fluctuate because of the water levels that are required to keep a tree alive. This can cause significant problems if a tree is too close to your home, because as the soil contracts and expands, it puts pressure on the foundation and can eventually cause cracks or shifting.

Because of these susceptibilities, overstocked forests, or dense forests with too many trees, are prone to high rates of tree mortality. These dead trees then provide fuel for and increase the risk of high-intensity wildfires that can be catastrophic for the forest and surrounding communities.

Trees' food-making process, photosynthesis, involves absorbing carbon dioxide from the air and storing it in its wood. Trees and plants will store this carbon dioxide throughout their lives, helping slow the gas's buildup in our atmosphere that has been rapidly warming our planet.

Trees give off oxygen that we need to breathe. Trees reduce the amount of storm water runoff, which reduces erosion and pollution in our waterways and may reduce the effects of flooding. Many species of wildlife depend on trees for habitat. Trees provide food, protection, and homes for many birds and mammals.

A growing body of research shows that regularly spending time around trees provides a wide range of human health benefits, from lowering stress to improving cognition to boosting longevity, according to experts.