Tutorial: TreePlotter™ Projects

Priority Areas can be viewed by navigating to your TreePlotter application and ensuring the Priority Areas reference layer is on. Priority Areas will be shown on the map by blue or green polygons. Blue polygons represent Inactive Priority Areas while green polygons represent Active Priority Areas. Clicking on a polygon will display a pop-up window with the Census Tract or Block Group information for the polygon. The Details button in the pop-up window will allow the user to edit the Priority Area details.

The Priority Area Details tab allows the user to edit particular data fields like the project Status, Year Initiated, Name, and Description of the Priority Area. The Details tab also displays other information like the Census Tract ID, Last Modified Date and User, as well as any uploaded attachments.

The Priority Area Canopy Data tab displays landcover metrics for the selected Priority Area like Urban Tree Canopy, Tree Canopy over Vegetation, percentage of impervious surfaces, among others. These metrics are pulled from the CANOPY module of the application and cannot be modified.

The Priority Area Planting and Canopy Goals tab allows the user to edit particular data fields like Target Canopy Percentage, Average Crown Diameter, Mortality Rate, and Number of Trees Needed to define Project Area canopy goals. The Planting and Canopy Goals tab also displays other Priority Area metrics like Active Projects, Proposed Projects, Complete Projects, and Overall Projects totals.

To load a Project within a Priority Area, the user will select the Priority Area of interest (1) and then click the ‘Load Projects’ button (2) to load all Projects in the Priority Area. Projects will appear as colored polygons according to the Project Status field found in the Project Details tab. If a Project(s) does not appear after clicking the ‘Load Projects’ button, no Projects exist and the Legend will display “No Projects”. A new project area will need to be drawn.

Project Areas are added by the user through a drawing tool. When in a Priority Area, Projects can be drawn on the map by using the ‘Add’ button to open the Project Area draw tool. The Project Area boundary can be defined by clicking on the map to draw successive line segments delineating the desired boundary. Once the polygon is a closed shape, the Project Details popup will appear for editing.

The Project Area Details tab allows the user to edit particular Project data fields like the Name, Type, Status, Start/Completion Dates, and add photos or attachments. The tab also displays other Project Area metrics like the date the project was added, when the project was last modified, and by whom the project was last modified.

The Project Area Project Management tab allows the user to edit particular Project data fields like the name and information associated with the Project Manager, project budget, funding source for the project, number of volunteers needed for project support, if the project is part of a program, notes about the project, and the site suitability for tree plantings in the Project Area. The tab also displays the Priority Area that is associated with the Project Area.

The Project Area Planting and Canopy Goals tab allows the user to edit particular Project data fields like the number of trees to plant for the tree planting goal, the amount of desired canopy coverage, and estimated current canopy coverage. The tab also displays a variety of metrics including established tree counts, proposed site counts, number of trees planted, the canopy gap percentage, projected canopy cover percentage, and the acreage of the Project Area.

Trees associated with a Project Area can be loaded onto the map by clicking on the desired Project Area polygon (1). Once the desired Project Area has been selected, the Project Area popup window will be displayed (2). To load trees into the Project Area, click the ‘Load Trees’ button. All the trees associated with the Project Area will be loaded into the polygon. Any new trees added to the Project Area will be automatically assigned to this Project Area.

After loading trees into a Project Area, proposed planting locations can be added to the Project Area. The ‘Add’ button will display the planting site template and will provide a choice of small, medium, or large sites. The planting site templates come with a number of prepopulated data fields including Status (prepopulated with the site size), Project (the name associated with the Project Area, and Mature Crown Diameter in feet. The difference between the site sizes is that the Mature Crown Diameter field will prepopulate with “10” (feet) for Small planting sites, “20” (feet) for Medium planting sites, and “30” (feet) for Large planting sites.

Once a tree template is selected, the Add method popup window will display. We recommend selecting the By Map add method for best control over point placement on the map. Click a location on the map to add a planting site and open the Tree Details popup. Fill out the form with the desired information and close the form to add the proposed site.

Planting site selection can be enhanced in Projects by using the the Symbology in the Legend to show the Mature Crown Diameter (feet). Mature Crown Diameter symbology can be viewed by selecting the “Mature Crown Diameter (ft)” option in the Symbology dropdown list. With this symbology selected, a light green boundary will appear around each point which depicts the “Mature Crown Diameter (ft)” of the point. Review the map symbology to ensure adequate crown spacing at maturity for proposed plantings within the Project Area (orange) boundary. The Move tool can be used to move proposed sites, if needed.

Work Records (WRS) can be added to the Proposed Site(s) to schedule and track planting efforts and to update tree details. WRS can also be used to schedule and track the activities related to pruning, Plant Health Care (PHC), and removal. These workflows are considered in the following section, Work Tracking.

Project Areas may have existing trees that need to be inventoried and managed. Existing trees can be added to a Project Area through the ‘Add’ button. Once the add feature is engaged, select the Tree option in the Template popup window, and select the By Map Add Method in the following popup window. We recommend selecting the By Map add method for best control over point placement on the map. Select the desired location on the map to place a tree point. Fill out the Tree Details form with the desired information and close the form to add the tree point.

When a tree is added within the Project Area boundary, the Project data field will prepopulate with the Project name. This automation connects the tree to the Project Area and Priority Area.

The Work Categories Lookup Table contains common work categories. New work categories can be added to the Lookup table by clicking the ‘Add’ button.

The Work Tasks Lookup Table contains common work tasks. New work tasks can be added to the Lookup table by clicking the ‘Add’ button. Costs for work tasks can be added to the Costs column by selecting the checkbox near the Work Task name, and then editing the cost in the Costs popup window.