Weather Temperture related urban stress

Justin Oriente Weather plays a big role regarding plant life in any part of the country and also the world. It can determine if a plant will be able to grow or not and if it will get the things that it needs to succeed as the plant matures. However, if the weather is not kind to plants in many places the people that live near to the plant and help to plant them will look out for them by giving them what the natural weather doesn’t. One place that this seldom happens in though is urban areas. Most of the time the trees and other plants that we see in urban areas are planted by the local municipal board so the residents don’t feel like it is their job to help the plant prosper. It is important for parks to prosper in urban areas for a number of reasons. One of them is that parks are a way to bring brightness to a bleak city. (Gabriel) This is important because of the fact that parks allow people to come together and also allow for kids to have fun and experience nature in some way that they normally don’t while in their houses. Another reason why it is important that parks prosper is because of the fact that parks are another revenue source for many of these urban cities. (Gabriel) This is important because it allows money to come into the community through the rental of these parks and also by allowing others to experience the park to its fullest. One problem that urban parks face in regards to weather is that most face extreme conditions varying from summer to fall. One example that I was able to find was of Stanley Park in Vancouver, Canada. The people there did a study of all the types of weather that the park faced ranging from heavy snow during the winter to incredible heat during the summer. One of the most important facts that they took from this survey was that a park needs extra help and it can’t brave through the elements by itself. (Kheraj) This was an important fact to take away from it because it shows that clean up groups and also sustainability groups are so important to a parks life. I found this to be an interesting fact because it shows that our volunteer hours are going to a good use because parks need extra care since there are severe weather storms that occur to parks. Another problem that urban parks face is the range of temperatures that they face during a year. This is an important factor to consider because of the extra care that plants now need due to widening temperatures that they have to react to throughout the year. An example of this is how in the summer time it would be a good idea to water your plants a lot because the need is there for them to grow. Another example for the winter time would be to dust the snow off your trees to make sure the snow doesn’t accumulate and break the branches. Overall these are all very important factors that contribute to the aspect of parks and trees in relation to weather and temperature. Bibliography Gabriel, N. (2011). The work that parks do: towards an urban environment. Social & Cultural Geography, 12(2), 123-141. doi:10.1080/14649365.2011.545139 Kheraj, S. (2007). Restoring Nature: Ecology, Memory, and the Storm History of Vancouver's Stanley Park. Canadian Historical Review, 88(4), 577-612. doi:10.3138/chr.88.4.577