Effect of city lights on trees

[godmodd5 0]

Oct 16 2005

I was in edmonton and I had noticed that many trees in Edmonton are still green and even still growing.

After looking at them i figured out why.

All these trees are near helogen and florecent lights which emit UV rays and heat.

Most trees turn due to the sunlight so that a freek midsummer frost or a midwinter heatwave can't trick the trees into chaging state.

Thus the trees receive light 24 hours a day.

This can be a threat to the safty of nearby objects as the tree will grow untill HEAVY SNOW drives it in dormantcy.

In Buffalo,NY  more trees had leaves than rural areas around the city. Thus the tree damage to buffalo was Very bad compared to the countryside.

Picture proof: Photos of the aftermath in rural NY show that up to quarter of the trees had little foliage left. 

Some estamates of late color by Light types.

Helogen:  5 weeks

Florecent:  3-4 weeks

Sodium(streetlights): 3 weeks

Incondecent: 2 weeks

LED: None

[hamsterTK 93]

freaky

that must be a real danger for places that have streetlights mounted on power poles. Tree gets really huge and entagles with the wires and refuses to drop its leaves and come freezing rain KERRZAAP!

[s.i.X 13]

We have some trees here that will have leaves right into December, which is odd. Outside the city, they start to turn in mid August.

[connor_v 3]

Most trees in my town still have leaves, but it just snowed about 4 inches today, so they are all bent out of shape.

[godmodd5 0]

Olny some trees in my town have leaves.

thats cause of a Thunderstorm on oct 1

By the way we got 2 inches in wetaskiwin and it is still snowing.

Snow tends to linger in my area until it dissapates.

[hym 358]

I would imagine that excessive light would have some odd effects on a tree or any other plant.  As has been mentioned, trees use the length of sunlight to determine how to act (so to speak).  If a tree is left under a light 24/7, it would stand to reason that the tree would think that it is perpetual summer around it.  Some people don't know this, but poinsettias, often considered to be a symbol of the winter holiday season, actually bloom out shortly before then.  Florists adjust the lighting the plants receive so that they will bloom right as the holiday season begins. 

In my opinion, I don't think that the trees being under constant light is really much of a safety hazard if it is handled properly.  Trees grow regardless of whether or not they receive constant light, and that growth is where they become a safety hazard.  Yes, being under light 24 hours a day could potentially make the tree grow faster, but the fact that trees do grow and need maintenance is the reason why people have created tree-trimming services.  Simply trim the tree back to acceptable levels and the growth shouldn't be a problem.

[godmodd5 0]

The trees a a safety problem due the fact that the trees will maintain foliage during the first major snowstorms of the winter season.

Normaly the trees lose the leaves by the first major snowstorms.

For example in calgary the first major snowstorm in happens in mid october.

With the trees still having foliage braches will break and fall on to powerlines, cars, and even people

The trees outside of calgary have already shedd the leaves by mid october.

The lights don't kill the trees as the cold brings the trees into winter sleep and the still green leaves just die and fall off.