How many species of trees does Appleton manage? You might be surprised
Reader question: How many different types of trees does the City of Appleton plant and maintain? Answer: The proposed 2027 Appleton budget contains a section titled "Statistics and Performance Indicators" that states the city maintains 53 species of terrace trees, which exceeds its target of 42. The section further states that Appleton has eight tree species that number more than 1,000 trees. Its target is nine species at that threshold. I called City Forester Mike Stanonik to learn more. He directed me to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources' Wisconsin Community Tree Map , a website that identifies nearly 1.3 million trees by species, size, condition and precise location. The Tree Map counts 34,205 terrace and park trees in Appleton, though about 250 of them were damaged or destroyed by the July 27 tornado . Park trees in naturalized areas, such as ravines or waterways, haven't been inventoried and aren't included in the total. Interestingly, the Tree Map lists 10 species in Appleton that exceed 1,000 trees, two more than indicated in the city budget, and 100 species overall, nearly double the total in the budget. Stanonik attributed the differences to how the trees are categorized in the inventories. Various
