Species Diversity

Growing A Climate‑Ready, Wildlife‑Friendly Urban Forest In Eau Claire: CTMI Project

Posted on by janness

By Jane Mohler

Trees in Eau Claire

Trees flank the pedestrian High Bridge Trail in Eau Claire. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR

As co‑chair of the Chippewa Valley Biodiversity Partnership and a member of the Eau Claire Urban Forest Board, I joined the 2025-26 Wisconsin DNR Community Tree Management Institute (CTMI) to expand my skillset and take advantage of networking opportunities. CTMI is an advanced training course designed specifically for people responsible for urban forest management who do not have a degree/formal training in urban forestry and/or would like to hone their leadership and management skills. This program culminates in a final project utilizing the skills and knowledge gained throughout the 38 hours of instruction.

The shared goal was simple and urgent: help Eau Claire grow an urban forest that can handle a changing climate while supporting birds, pollinators and people for decades to come. We saw a quiet but powerful opportunity in the city’s Recommended Tree List. This “go‑to” list guides what gets planted along streets, in new subdivisions, around schools and in parks—and therefore, what our canopy will look like 30–50 years from now. Updating this list with climate and biodiversity in mind became the focus of my CTMI project. Continue reading “Growing A Climate‑Ready, Wildlife‑Friendly Urban Forest In Eau Claire: CTMI Project” →

What’s In A Name? An Intro To Reading Scientific Names

Posted on by janness

By Abby Krause, DNR Urban Forestry Coordinator
Abigail.Krause@wisconsin.gov or 608-556-5690

What’s in a name? That which we call a tree by any other name would stand as tall. Okay, maybe that’s not exactly how the Shakespeare quote goes, but in the urban forestry world, what we call a tree does play into our management decisions.

As communities work to recover from the devastation inflicted by invasives pests and build resilience against future challenges, species diversity rules have become the guide for planting projects. Planning out care of trees once they’re in the ground also revolves around knowing which species are present. How are we tallying our progress toward diversity goals, relaying the specific species we want to order from the nursery or narrowing down what’s ailing that tree in the park? Continue reading “What’s In A Name? An Intro To Reading Scientific Names” →

Networking At Riveredge Nature Center

Posted on by janness

By Olivia Witthun, DNR Urban Forestry Coordinator; Olivia.Witthun@wisconsin.gov or 414-750-8744

Tree managers met at Riveredge Nature Center (RNC) for a networking meeting/field tour at the end of July. RNC is located in Saukville, ground zero for Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) in Wisconsin, which was discovered in 2008.

The indoor portion of the meeting consisted of updates from DNR Urban Forestry and Forest Health staff.  There was also time for open sharing amongst attendees and an overview by Matt Smith (RNC) about what we’d be seeing in the field. Continue reading “Networking At Riveredge Nature Center” →