By Wendy Greenberg

A red maple on North Road, an American elm on University Place – these are among more than 18,000 trees in Princeton now included on a publicly accessed map with information about their size and location. What’s more, the municipal arborist has a maintenance record on each one, and can use data to aid decisions about tree removal, planting, and planning.

Princeton’s Street Tree Inventory on 18,167 trees, to be exact, can now be viewed at princetonnj.treekeepersoftware.com. It also shows stumps and vacant tree pits — 19,000 locations in all.

Why does it matter? The benefits are many, according to Princeton Arborist Taylor Sapudar, who explained that a municipal street tree inventory gives the arborist and his staff the data-based tools with which to keep the area’s trees diverse and growing.

Residents can learn what trees they have in front of their houses, and they can learn the environmental benefits of the trees and how to care for them, said Sapudar, who is a New Jersey licensed tree expert and certified arborist.

The inventory is the result of a grant, which the Princeton Department of Infrastructure and Operation applied for last summer from the Department of Environmental Protection New Jersey Forest Service. The $50,000 “Resiliency” grant was approved, and the inventory was undertaken by the Davey Resource Group last November through this past winter, said Sapudar. Davey Resource Group is a research arm of Davey Tree Expert Company.

The map indicates the total yearly ecological benefits (based on Davey’s calculations) as about $1.5 million; as well as greenhouse gas benefits, water benefits, energy benefits, air quality, and property benefits.

Sapudar pointed out that some of the municipal benefits of a street tree inventory are safety, as the inventory will warn of the potential for tree failure due to pests or disease; data-based decision-making, informing spending decisions based on the urgency of removing dead or decayed trees; and support for budgeting and establishing a scope or timetable of tree work.

Additionally, Sapudar pointed out, a detailed inventory report will allow the arborist and shade tree commission to solicit cost proposals, and offer guidance. Since diversity helps ensure that too many trees are not subject to devastation from a single pest or disease, the inventory is important in that it offers a picture of the diversity of tree species in Princeton.

The inventory does not include every tree in Princeton, Sapudar said, and is limited in that it does not include some open spaces and rural areas. But there is plenty of information.

The site inventory shows photos of each tree, as well as the name and the diameter of breast height (DBH), a measurement of size. This is helpful, said Sapudar, because in an area where there are a lot of mature trees, the municipality would consider monitoring and planning to replant newer trees. Multi-stem trees are indicated, which is important to assess line of sight. And indications of where stumps exist help in plans to grind, which Princeton does in-house.

If a resident thinks a tree needs maintenance work, said Sapudar, the municipality keeps a maintenance log.

The next step, he said, is to continue to add trees, “when staff time permits. It’s beneficial for all involved.”

Sapudar has been the Princeton municipal arborist since April 2018. He attended Mercer County Community College for ornamental horticulture, Rutgers University for environmental planning, and he recently finished graduate work in urban forestry from Oregon State University. He has worked at a nationally known tree care company and for an engineering firm that worked directly with the New York City Parks Department, where he worked on the Bloomberg Million Street Tree Campaign. He estimates that he has been involved with the planting of more than 5,000 trees.

For residents who want to learn more about trees, Sapudar also publishes “Treemendous Facts” and a Tree of the Month, both on the municipal website at princetonnj.gov. These monthly posts are a joint effort  between Sapudar and members of the Princeton Shade Tree Commission, who work on the posts with him, he said.

Of New Jersey’s 564 municipalities, Princeton is among the few with a full-time arborist, a full-time open space manager, and trained municipal tree crew. “We’re in good hands,” said Sapudar.