I recently visited family in Long Island, NY (Suffolk County), and noticed the typical neighborhood trees are quite obviously a good deal taller than the ones in Austin, TX where I live - why?
More water?
Different tree species?
Older?
Well, son, it’s rather obvious, don’t cha’ know, because you’re not from these parts, that everything is bigger on Long Island.
Water and species … I’ve lived on the northern California coast … those were scrubs you saw on Long Island and Texas …
Weather plays a part. Wind, Sun, Rain, all play a part; and the nutrients in the terrain: *terroir *affects all plants, not just grapes.
There are treeless islands in Scotland where the sea blows rough; and in England they introduced a species of Maple called a Sycamore to run along windy ridges to protect farmhouses as early as the 16th century.So it varies.
We already had maples.
Thickness of trunk is also determined by species, age, water, nutrient, and weather. If you’re planting trees along city streets, pick thin-trunked ones near corners, to preserve the line of sight for vehicles approaching the intersection.
Don’t plant trees near overhead power lines like they do in Wine Country …
Different species? - Of course that’s very likely - the question is, why are the handful of common species that grow there on average noticeably quite a bit taller than the handful of common species that grow here are on average?
Older? - Interesting, I don’t know what the relative mix of older growth vs newer planted trees would be there vs here.
Water/nutrients? - That’s the main difference I was thinking of…a US Climate data site says 47" of average annual precipitation there vs. 34" here (and their rainfall is more “even”, with little to no rainfall here during the summer months), I suppose that is a quite substantial difference.
Climate. Species. Age.
Climate. It rains more on the east coast.
Southeast Texas gets regular rain and big trees. It borders Southwest Louisiana. The border is fairly close to my dad’s family home. My dad’s family has lived there for over five generations. The Davy Crockett and Sabine National Forests are in that area.
West Texas is much more dry. I’ve only driven through it a few times.
The sand content of the soil would matter … the sandier soils of Texas can’t support the taller trees as much as the eluvial soils on Long Island … or the Mazama clays in Western Oregon. where trees are still considered saplings until they reach 100’ …
As I understand, the tallest tree (known) is about 390’ tall, and it sits in a gorge 395’ deep … good wind protection there …
Here’s a possible explanation:
Eastern US conditions of soil & weather will support reasonably dense forests. Trees that grow in dense forests must compete for sunlight, so those with DNA that makes then tend to grow taller will be relatively more successful. These are the same species that tend to be planted in Suffolk County NY, so they grow tall even when they don’t have to.
The drier climate typical of much of Texas will not support dense forests. Trees there must struggle not for sunlight but instead for limited water. This suggests that they should have evolved relatively deep and broad root systems instead of growing tall.
While sycamores have similar leaf shape to maples, their seeds and bark are completely different. I don’t think they’re a kind of maple.
That’s going to be the major factor influencing how tall trees grow in a geographic area. However, the annual temperature and the seasonal rainfall pattern also has an effect. What really matters to plants is what is called evapotranspiration, that is, the amount of water drawn up from the soil and evaporated from the leaves. (Plants need to transpire water from their leaves in order to photosynthesize.) Since the temperatures are higher in Austin and the humidity is lower, more water will evaporate from the plant’s leaves. This creates a high water demand by the plant, so that they will need relatively more water than in a cooler and more humid climate. So the effective difference in precipitation is even greater than the raw numbers indicate. (Of course, all this is simplified.)
The drier it is, in general the lower the height and diameter of wood vegetation. Deserts have low, widely spaced shrubs. Areas that are a bit wetter have taller scrub, then grading into low thorn forest. The tallest forests (on average) are found in temperate and tropical forests with the greatest rainfall.
No, it’s *definitely *a maple.
You might be thinking of the plane tree. Or the American sycamore. But neither is what **Evan **is referring to. "Sycamore"isn’t very specific.
Huh, I didn’t know there was any sycamore other than the American sycamore, with the distinctive mottled shedding bark. Those links do confirm that the American sycamore isn’t closely related to the maples, though (completely different orders).
I kind of knew there were other trees called Sycamore, but it’s our habit here in this country to consider our own above all others and I would have made the same incorrect assumption as the poster. I don’t have any real excuse though, I know a little bit more about wood species from around the world than the average person, the same common names are used for many different species. Thank you for correcting the record.
On reading the title of this thread I immediately thought of something that no one else has brought up so far. Neighborhood HOA covenants. I’m not entirely sure what the scenery is like in Austin but here in the Puget Sound area, there are hillsides full of houses where tall trees are verboten so as not to block anyone’s view of the Sound or the mountains. Thankfully, only a small percentage of neighborhoods are like that. Many more are full of the 60 foot big leaf maples and 80-100 foot Douglas firs that grow so abundantly here. Not that I’d expect to find either of those trees in Austin. I just thought I’d throw this factor in the mix.