ABSTRACT: Tree arborization in streets brings several advantages to the urban environment. In addition to their aesthetic function, urban trees cool local surface temperature, provide air humidity, ensure shelter and food for birds, reduce soil erosion while providing shade, all of which results in a more enjoyable urban landscape. Due to the
city’s dynamism growth demands, urban streets often lack good tree coverage on the sidewalks or central plant beds along the streets. This paper conducts a qualitative study on tree arborization in seven public streets located in the urban area of São Carlos (São Paulo/Brazil). These streets were selected because of their high traffic flow. The methodology used in this research consists of an in loco qualitative analysis of urban trees using the Geographic Information System (GIS) to contextualize the road sections under study. The results showed the occurrence of species diversity, development stages, and the level of care and maintenance of trees along the streets assessed. The potential for inserting new arboreal specimens was also observed, which in terms of economic, visibility or luminosity factors, would cause no impairment.
