Jan. 26, 1999
Contact: Jane Ford
(804) 924-4298
	
										
Saving a Forest, 3,000 Trees at a Time
THE UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA FOUNDATION BEGINS INNOVATIVE 
LANDSCAPE RELOCATION PROJECT AT NORTH FORK RESEARCH PARK

	Times are changing. Not long ago it was common practice on a
building site to cut down the trees and burn them to clear the area for
construction. The University of Virginia Foundation is saving 3,000
trees at its University of Virginia Research Park at North Fork.  The
trees, about 2,500 cedars and 500 hardwoods ranging up to 50-60 feet
tall, will be moved from designated building sites to line Lewis and
Clarke Drive, the main road into the park. 
	ÒSustainable issues are an important aspect of all design
solutions at North Fork,Ó says Tim Rose, chief executive officer of
the University of Virginia Foundation.  A few other examples of
sustainable practices at North Fork include: minimizing mowed grass
areas, using parking orchards which will be planted with five times the
normal number of trees, and planting indigenous species of plant
materials to reduce the need for fertilizers and pesticides.  In
addition, almost 40 percent of the 532-acre park will remain undeveloped
and be allowed to revert from its farming past to a wilderness preserve.
	ÒThis is a very environmentally sensitive design
solution,Ó says Jim Brown, landscape architect with the Northern
Virginia firm of Dewberry and Davis, who designed a streetscape along
Lewis and Clarke Drive.
	The concept is to replicate the existing forest pattern says
Brown. Using a variety of tree sizes representing the natural forest mix
found on the site, the trees will be replanted in combination with
natural earth berms in the median and along the roadside.  Small trees
will be planted next to large and oaks next to maples. 
	This is one of the biggest relocation projects in the country.
ÒIf not the biggest, it is one of the biggest in terms of
magnitude,Ó Brown says. 
	The relocation concept is gaining nationwide support and has
been written into a number of county ordinances in Northern Virginia. A
key advantage is that relocation saves about 50 percent 
						
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of the cost of using nursery stock. 
	Davey Tree Expert Company of Kent, Ohio was selected by the
U.Va. Foundation to move the trees. They are the oldest and largest
residential and commercial tree-care company in the world and have been
moving trees since the 1890s, says Robert Craft, assistant district
manager in the companyÕs Chantilly, VA, office.  They have provided
transplanting services to the National Arboretum, the National Park
Service, Arlington National Cemetery, the Federal Reserve, and the
General Services Administration.
	The project will require 18-20 workers and last about a month.
Smaller cedar trees will be moved first, followed by the larger trees as
the project progresses. Some smaller equipment has been moved on site.
Weather permitting, large tree-spade trucks and equipment will be
brought in the week of Jan. 25.
	Weather plays an important role in transplanting. In terms of
season, this is a good time to plant Craft says. ÒThe trees are
dormant and we have a 95 percent success rate.  On the other hand, if
the soil is too wet, the big heavy equipment cannot move around in the
mud.Ó
	An extensive study and identification of the native species of
plants and trees was undertaken by Charlottesville-based landscape
architect Gregg Bleam. Species of native plants and trees on the site
and six different kinds of natural habitats were identified.  Bleam
teamed with Virginia-based Mitchell/Matthews Architects and the Maryland
office of Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company on the design of the master plan
of North Fork. 
	BleamÕs design for the parkÕs main entry includes a
300-foot-long stone retaining wall framed in back by tulip popular trees
-- JeffersonÕs favorites -- planted in a native grid pattern called a
bosque.ÊWork on this phase will begin in the spring.

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	For more information, contact Tim Rose at (804) 924-4848.
Television reporters should contact the TV News Office at (804)
924-7550.