Impacts of drought and/or heat on urban trees: mechanisms and strategies for enhancing resilience

Abstract

Urban tree health and resilience are increasingly threatened by intensified drought and heat stress under global climate change. Despite extensive research on extreme weather impacts on natural forests and the ecological functions of urban trees, the specific responses of urban trees to such stressors remain inadequately understood. This review synthesizes current knowledge on how drought and/or heat stress affects urban trees at the morphological, growth-related, and physiological levels. As tree resilience mediates adaptive responses to these stressors, key drivers shaping resilience are systematically summarized, including weather attributes, urban tree traits, and anthropogenic disturbances. To enhance the adaptive capacity of urban trees, practical recommendations are proposed based on existing management practices, with emphasis on physiological-ecological trade-off mechanisms, the synergistic effects of compound stresses, and multivariate management strategies. Critical knowledge gaps are identified, including the biochemical and genetic regulatory mechanisms underlying urban tree stress responses, the non-linear interactions of multiple stressors, and the need for more comprehensive evaluation and management frameworks. Overall, this review integrates the mechanisms, drivers, and management strategies governing urban tree responses to extreme weather, providing actionable insights for strengthening urban forest resilience under future climate extremes.

Keywords

Urban trees / Drought and heat stress / Climate resilience / Urban tree management

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Funding

the National Key Research and Development Program of China(No. 2024YFF1307104)

the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No. 42530514)

the Nanjing University International Collaboration Initiative

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

Northeast Forestry University