The effects of tree characteristics on rainfall interception in urban areas

• Published in: Landscape and ecological engineering Vol. 15; no. 3; pp. 289 - 296
• Main Authors: Yang, Byungsun, Lee, Dong Kun, Heo, Han Kyul, Biging, Gregory
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Tokyo Springer Japan 01.07.2019; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Aesculus turbinata; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Canopies; canopy; Civil Engineering; ecological restoration; Environmental Management; Environmental restoration; Evaporation; geometry; Ginkgo biloba; Green infrastructure; Hydrologic cycle; Hydrology; Interception; Landscape Ecology; Landscape/Regional and Urban Planning; Leaf angle; Leaf area; Leaf area index; Leaves; Life Sciences; Mathematical morphology; Morphology; Nature Conservation; Open spaces; Original Paper; planning; Plant Ecology; Plant species; planters; rain; Raindrops; Rainfall; Rainfall interception; Restoration; Runoff; scanners; South Korea; street trees; Styphnolobium japonicum; Throughfall; tree height; Trees; Urban areas; Urban hydrology; Urban planning; water interception; Zelkova serrata; South Korea; Tree species; Urban water cycle; Runoff; Terrestrial laser scanner; Leaf area index
• DOI: 10.1007/s11355-019-00383-w
• ISSN: 1860-1871

Trees in urban areas have significant effects on the urban ecosystem. They can be used to improve the water cycle in urban areas by increasing evaporation and reducing runoff through rainfall interception. Street trees placed in planters on impervious areas reduce runoff by intercepting rainfall and by temporarily storing raindrops on leaves. Therefore, understanding tree canopy geometry and the effect of rainfall interception is important in urban hydrology. In this study, we assessed the effect of tree canopy morphology on rainfall interception using four major street tree species, Sophora japonica L., Ginkgo biloba L., Zelkova serrata (Thunb.) Makino, and Aesculus turbinata Blume, in Seoul, South Korea. We measured throughfall for each tree and also derived three-dimensional data of tree canopy morphology with a terrestrial laser scanner. Tree height, canopy crown width, leaf area index (LAI), leaf area density, mean leaf area, and mean leaf angle were used to determine canopy morphology. The interception rate was mostly affected by the LAI; a higher LAI tended to result in a higher interception rate. Leaf area affected the rainfall interception rate when trees had similar LAIs. These findings on individual tree canopy rainfall interception can help us to understand the importance of rainfall interception in hydrology and for ecological restoration when planning urban green spaces.