Assessing Suitability of Landscape Palm Trees in the Urban Environments of Southern Arizona

Calegari, Jake

dc.contributor.author	Calegari, Jake
dc.date.accessioned	2017-05-18T16:29:57Z
dc.date.available	2017-05-18T16:29:57Z
dc.date.issued	2017-05-12
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10150/623528
dc.description	Sustainable Built Environments Senior Capstone Project	en
dc.description.abstract	Landscape architecture and design play a crucial role in addressing growing concerns over environmental sustainability. Palm trees (plants in the family Aracaceae) are an iconic and ubiquitous part of landscape design in the southwestern United States, but limited research has been conducted on the ecological and economic effects of these species. This research used a case study of the University of Arizona Campus Arboretum to examine the costs and benefits of six of the site’s most ubiquitous palm species: Brahea armata, Washingtonia filifera, Washingtonia robusta, Chamaerops humilis, Phoenix dactylifera, and Phoenix canariensis. The study found the greatest net benefits from Washingtonia robusta, with all other species exhibiting an annual net cost for the university site. However, there is still value inherent in the use of the other palm species; beyond net economic quantitative value, consideration must also be given to additional factors pertinent to the evaluation of plant suitability when selecting plants for a site, on a case-by-case basis.
dc.language.iso	en_US	en
dc.publisher	The University of Arizona.	en
dc.rights	Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the College of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Architecture, and the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author.	en
dc.title	Assessing Suitability of Landscape Palm Trees in the Urban Environments of Southern Arizona	en_US
dc.type	text	en
dc.contributor.department	College of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Architecture	en_US
dc.description.collectioninformation	This item is part of the Sustainable Built Environments collection. For more information, contact http://sbe.arizona.edu.	en
dc.contributor.mentor	Quist, Tanya Ph.D.	en
dc.contributor.instructor	Iuliano, Joseph	en
refterms.dateFOA	2018-09-11T19:31:11Z
html.description.abstract	Landscape architecture and design play a crucial role in addressing growing concerns over environmental sustainability. Palm trees (plants in the family Aracaceae) are an iconic and ubiquitous part of landscape design in the southwestern United States, but limited research has been conducted on the ecological and economic effects of these species. This research used a case study of the University of Arizona Campus Arboretum to examine the costs and benefits of six of the site’s most ubiquitous palm species: Brahea armata, Washingtonia filifera, Washingtonia robusta, Chamaerops humilis, Phoenix dactylifera, and Phoenix canariensis. The study found the greatest net benefits from Washingtonia robusta, with all other species exhibiting an annual net cost for the university site. However, there is still value inherent in the use of the other palm species; beyond net economic quantitative value, consideration must also be given to additional factors pertinent to the evaluation of plant suitability when selecting plants for a site, on a case-by-case basis.