Management of parks and gardens requalification of green areas

Park and garden management
Redevelopment of green areas

Soradis S.I.A. S.r.l. also carries out periodic and/or extraordinary maintenance of parks and gardens, both public and private, performing pruning and felling with aerial platforms or using the "tree climbing" method. Thanks to our high specialization, special attention is given to all phytosanitary issues of the present plant species.

Green space management cannot be separated from a census (mandatory for municipalities with more than 15,000 inhabitants) and simultaneous preventive and periodic control of the arboreal and shrub equipment within a park or garden.

Censusing and checking the health of the plants allows planning suitable interventions for the protection of the plants themselves and the users. In particular, tree control is carried out according to methodologies aimed at verifying their health and/or stability.

Within Soradis S.I.A. S.r.l., there is a drone division capable of providing support for the census phase at variable heights of the furniture and arboreal and shrub equipment present. Additionally, we have in our staff Forest Engeneers, regularly registered with their professional order, capable of performing tree stability checks.

Among the methodologies existing today, the most used and well-known is the Visual Tree Assessment (V.T.A.), which allows conducting a phytosanitary investigation to assess the structural conditions of the tree.

The V.T.A. is based on the identification of any external symptoms that the tree manifests in the presence of anomalies affecting the internal wood; even where there are no cavities or macroscopic evidence of ongoing decay (for example, fungi developing on woody tissues), it is possible, through the recognition of these symptoms, to detect the signal of the presence of mechanical and physical defects inside the tree.

At the end of the verification, for each controlled plant, a sheet is drawn up where the species, the day of verification, the dendrometric data (diameter and height), a description of the vegetation site, and the health status of the individual parts of the plant (roots, trunk, and crown) are reported.

Finally, the plant is assigned a class of propensity to failure and any prescriptions (type of pruning, possible felling and replacement, next verification, endotherapeutic interventions, etc.)

The Italian Society of Arboriculture (S.I.A.) has drafted a protocol for verifying the stability of plants:

Below we present the new classification of the propensity for tree failure:

Class

Description

Class A Ngligible

Trees belonging to this class, at the time of the investigation, do not show any significant signs, symptoms, or defects detectable with visual inspection that would suggest the tree's natural safety factor has been reduced. For these trees, it is advisable to conduct periodic visual inspections, with a frequency determined by the responsible technician, but not exceeding five years.

Class B Low

Trees belonging to this class, at the time of the investigation, show mild signs, symptoms, or defects detectable with visual inspection and, at the technician's discretion, with instrumental investigations, indicating that the tree's natural safety factor has not significantly reduced. For these trees, periodic visual inspections are advisable, with a frequency determined by the responsible technician, but not exceeding three years. Any further diagnostic investigation of an instrumental nature and its frequency are at the technician's discretion.

Class C Medium

Trees belonging to this class, at the time of the investigation, show significant signs, symptoms, or defects detectable with visual inspection and typically with instrumental investigations*. The anomalies found are such that the tree's natural safety factor is considered to be significantly reduced. For these trees, periodic visual inspections are advisable, with a frequency determined by the responsible technician, but not exceeding two years. Any further diagnostic investigation of an instrumental nature and its frequency are at the technician's discretion. This will still have a time interval not exceeding two years. For these trees, the responsible technician can design a set of cultural interventions aimed at reducing the level of danger, and if implemented, the hazard class of the tree can be modified.

Class C/D High

Trees belonging to this class, at the time of the investigation, show significant signs, symptoms, or defects detectable with visual inspection and typically with instrumental investigations*. The anomalies found are such that the tree's natural safety factor is considered to be drastically reduced. For these trees, the responsible technician must detail a set of cultural interventions. These interventions must aim to reduce the level of danger and be compatible with good arboricultural practices. If implemented, the technician will evaluate the possibility of modifying the tree's hazard class. If it is impossible to carry out the aforementioned interventions, the tree should be classified under class D.

*An analytical documented evaluation is allowed.

Class D Extreme

Trees belonging to this class, at the time of the investigation, show severe signs, symptoms, or defects detectable with visual inspection and typically with instrumental investigations*. The anomalies found indicate that the tree's natural safety factor has now been exhausted. For these trees, whose future prospects are severely compromised, any intervention to reduce the level of danger would be insufficient or achievable with techniques contrary to good arboricultural practice. Therefore, plants belonging to this class must be felled.

*An analytical documented evaluation is allowed.