locking bikes to trees

I've heard recently from several treekeepers and naturalists about a
problem that can have a very negative effect on our environment in
places we live and visit.

People who lock their bikes to saplings or trees can kill those
trees. The cambium (living tissue layer in a tree's trunk) lies just
beneath the bark. If the bark is bruised or damaged by contact with
bike frame, or U lock, or chain, it can create an opening into which a
common fungal disease can enter. This can kill the tree and often
does.  A small tree (2" trunk diameter or smaller) is much more
vulnerable to damage.

Also, unless it's a pretty large tree, thieves will sometimes cut down trees to steal bikes locked to them.

Please try to avoid locking your bike to tree trunks.  If you have
absolutely no other option, try using a bandanna or other cushioning
material to minimize contact between the tree trunk, bike and lock.
Help save our trees that make such a huge difference in our quality of
life and in providing food and shelter to many species of animals.

Anne

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Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on August 30, 2010 at 1:23pm
It takes a helluva lot longer to grow a tree than a carrot. The city usually doesn't chop down and replace parkway trees unless they're seriously ill or dead.

I don't feel that every tree is sacred, but if everyone was as cavalier as you about trees, we'd have no trees left.

James Baum said:
Every tree is sacred huh?

I think trees are grand. I'm all in favor of there being more trees at the end of the year, compared to when it started, than fewer. They are necessary for our health and our atmosphere.

But a tree is nothing more than a BIG carrot. Sure it's a lot bigger and lives for much longer but it's just a plant. Very few individual trees these days are "sacred" in that they can't be easily replaced if damaged or were in the way of something important like critical electrical/gas infrastructure. Most of the trees in the Chicago right of ways are cut down and replaced regularly anyhow by the city rather than mess around trimming them (yeah, it's stupid but it seems to be the case). It's probably cheaper by some cost/benefit labor metric.

Even the Vegans aren't against ripping a carrot by the hair right out of its family bed and throwing it into the chopper to die a painful death so they can CONSUME it.

Of course I'm not encouraging anyone to be an ass and damage other people's private property. But if I go to a place (like Petsmart on Elston and Logan) where there are ZERO bike racks or anytihng near to lock my bike up I'm not going to hesitate to lock my bike up to one of the 3" diameter shrubs in the lot islands for a few minutes while I get Kat fuud for Fattypuss.

It's not like it's some old-growth behemoth that was alive during the Roman Empire. Sure those should be saved. But as far as your ordinary garden-variety tree is concerned it's just a replaceable crop commodity.


H3N3 said:
The first report to the registry of a tree being sawed to steal a bike:

http://chicago.stolenbike.org/node/190320

I would have preferred that this guy just leave the bike on the lawn unlocked for the thief rather than endanger a tree.

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