Morphophysiological Insights By Laura Emmerson

Italy, a country renowned for its rich history, breathtaking landscapes, and unparalleled contributions to art and science, served as the backdrop for Laura Emmerson’s recent journey.

In this immersive study tour, Laura delves into the intricate world of Morphophysiology, exploring how structure and function harmonise within living organisms. This article, written by Laura, captures her experiences, reflections and the invaluable knowledge she gained along the way.

At the end of October last year (2024), the Arboricultural Association led a small contingent of UK (and Scottish/Swedish!) arboriculturists, researchers, foresters, tree officers, representatives of the Ancient Tree Forum and VETcert trainers to Ferrara, Italy, for a study tour.

The tour focused on tree morphophysiology, which relates to the study of tree shape and structure (‘morpho’) in relation to its function (‘physio). Our hosts were Giovanni Morelli and Stefania Gasperini, who helped develop this approach to tree management, alongside Pierre Raimbault and Francis Halle, over the last 50 years.

I have been lucky enough to see Giovanni and Stefania speak previously at Kew Gardens, where they began to introduce the concepts of morphophysiology. While the morphophysiological approach does not contradict UK arboricultural doctrine, it certainly frames tree development and management from a new perspective.

Tree morphophysiology provides a framework to understand the development strategies of trees, by describing 10 developmental stages of crowns and root systems. By recognising a tree’s morpophysiological stage of development, we can more accurately describe its history, predict the expected degree of hollowing, crown shedding and reiterative growth, and determine whether active intervention is necessary. Importantly, if it is determined that intervention is necessary, the framework guides the action to be taken and merely ‘helps’ a tree undergo the course of development it would naturally; I certainly found that examples of work carried by Giovanni and his team to be more sympathetic than (most) examples of UK tree-work I’ve seen, which often acts antagonistically and to the detriment of the tree. In many cases, very sensitive and minimal work is carried out over 5-10 years, and is funded by the government.

One key light-bulb moment for me came after a discussion of the later developmental stages in the framework, which describe the beginning of senescence. We discussed how the predictable framework can help determine whether a tree’s form (in accordance with it’s developmental stage) can alert us to a pathological influence – which will play a huge role in shaping my thought process in BS 5837, condition and risk surveys. Also a key point on the tour was the importance of considering developmental stage aside from chronological age; Giovanni had examples of chronologically ancient trees which had undergone complete transformations from stage 10 to stage 1 again, beginning new life as biologically independent ‘young’ trees.

It was an incredible and thought-provoking week. I enjoyed spending time with others in the industry in a beautiful city, had my ideas challenged and came away with an even greater appreciation for the resilience and beauty of trees. Its safe to say, I love my job!