Outstanding remnants of nature in compact cities: patterns and preservation of heritage trees in Guangzhou city (China)

摘要: Abstract Heritage trees (HTs) play pertinent ecological-landscaping roles in cities, yet the few known studies are mainly descriptive or resource inventories. This paper explores intertwined natural and cultural spatial associations between (species, dimensions age) city (landscape impact, urban fabric, district history landuse), assessing integrated city–tree complex at macro-scale. The study area includes eight main built-up districts (covering 116 km 2 ) of Guangzhou, a compact major South China. A survey historical inventory records identified 348 HTs which encompass city’s officially recognized HTs. Principal component analysis (PCA), Jaccard Index Similarity (JIS), other statistical tests helped to unravel associations. 25 HT species, compared 254 species entire forest, dominated by four common species. number increases with age 25–2500 years. more stressful cramped roadside habitat accommodates HTs, followed spacious park, intra-lot interstitial spaces education, government-institution, religious sites. 100–200-year bracket, older trees, indicating generation gap inability old preserve trees. Park sites accommodate oldest largest Roadside contains wide-crown due effective protection from motor vehicles inner bicycle lane. District is indicated JIS as determinant variations, landuse playing secondary role. Large polarise into normal degraded tree forms physical site constraints. Tall-wide short-wide high landscape impact contribution dominate impacts. PCA extracted three factors that explained 71.9% namely age–dimension, potential growth, history. Increasing compactness present management regime may fail sustain stock deprive precursors. concept ecological brinkmanship transgenerational arboriculture proposed enhance conservation.