This area of urban forestry has many names
including Landscape Management, Landscape Maintenance, Arboriculture,
and Landscape Ecology and perhaps best explains differences
between areas of interest. Urban Forestry crosses the lines
between forestry and horticulture. In general, horticulture
is primarily involved with the production of plants or plant
products including fruits, vegetables and plants grown for
aesthetic values such as flowers or shade. Urban forestry
generally deals with the plant after it is harvested in the
nursery and includes landscape installation and maintenance.
Forestry tends to separate itself from Urban Forestry based
on scale with forestry being more concerned with larger tracts.
Both forestry and urban forestry tend to manage for multiple
uses and differs in that sense from horticultural production.
Arboriculture and Urban Forestry are considered here as synonyms
but some distinguish from work done in the public sector (urban
forestry) and the private sector (arboriculture). Utility
forestry or arboriculture is also a major segment maintaining
the utility rights-of –ways and may be public or private
sector.
Research efforts at Ohio State focus on selection, installation,
and maintenance of plants in areas dominated by man. Small
villages and large metropolitan areas are both dominated by
man and subject to many or most of the same constraints.
