muller877
Senior Member
I have noticed a trend towards the planting of "dwarf" trees. By "dwarf", they mean very slow growing trees. They'll take much longer to reach maturity. They are almost the same tree as the non-dwarf trees, but take a couple or three generations to see them grow into tall trees.
ALMOST the same tree. But quite often they are very different.
Toronto has been encouraging native trees to be planted throughout the city by private land owners. For example, there are over 10 varieties of maple trees. Some are native, some are from the South. The quick-growing one such as a Norway Maple is an invasive species, very quick growing but is short-lived, branches fall off and emits a chemical into the ground which reduces the native undergrowth. On the other hand, Sugar Maples are slower growing but can live as long as 500 years. They are the ones that produce the best maple syrup.
So yes, many people have been planting these slower growing trees but at the request of the city of Toronto. And I think it's a good thing to have native species. I just wish there was more variety in the planting which would increase the diversity, decrease the risk of disease and just be prettier.
I also wish that the City of Toronto would follow its own recommendations and plant these native species along roadways. Imagine a newer subdivision in 50 years when there are 75 foot high trees, not stumps of invasive species that died.