Post survey followup

		Tools for Assessing and Managing Community Forests

Author: Joseph LaForest, University of Georgia

After you have finished collecting your IPED survey data, it is time to process the data using the tools provided by IPED. By following these simple steps, you may be able to identify existing problems in your urban forest and find resources to let you start a management program.

Summarizing the data with basic, static reports

The basic reporting summarizes the data without applying any additional resources to identify what the signs and symptoms may mean. This basic summary can help highlight the most prevalent signs and symptoms on a survey wide, street-wise and host specific basis. These most prevalent sign/symptom/host combination are a good starting point for investigation into what may be affecting your urban forest and may be some of the first items to be analyzed using the Dynamic Reporting tool in the desktop resources or IPED Key.

Applying the IPED dynamic reporting tools

The Dymanic reporting available on the IPED desktop tools or through the IPED Key available online, can help determine if the signs and symptoms from the survey match those that would indicate that you may have an infestation of a pest or disease. You can examine the facthseets and other information resources that are provided through the IPED online resources and determine if there are some apparent problems that require a closer look.

Using Raw Data to selecting trees for further inspection

Once you know what pests or diseases that you want to focus on, it is time to find the experts that can verify the identity of the organism and then help you figure out what to do about it. These experts will need a list of trees to visit and perform a more detailed inspection. Get a list of trees that best match the sign and symptoms for the organism that you want your expert to look for. You should have one list for every pest.

Using experts for official identification of a suspected problem

The National Plant Diagnostic Network has developed a protocol to handle the discovery of new pests and frequently runs simulations to test and improve the response. For most people, the extension agent for your area will be the primary contact to bring expertise to the situation and help verify the agent causing damage to the urban forest. The extension agent listing can be found at the USDA APHIS agent finder site. A further explanation of what happens in handling new finds is also available.

Find out what signs and symptoms to look for in the future

Even if you do not find anything of concern, you can receive a list of the "key things to look for" based on the species composition of your urban forest and the signs/symptoms associated with the Early Detection Targets. This list can be helpful in raising awareness of what to look for as you continue to monitor the health of your urban forest. Any improvement in the early detection of pests in the urban forest increases the chance of controlling new infestations.