How do you decide how big a tree is? It can’t just be height or circumference alone; it must be a weighted combination of some kind. And, of course, we want a non-destructive way to measure it; digging up the tree would defeat the purpose. A widely used system, at least in the United States, is the American Forests point system. This is defined as: circumference (in inches) + height (in feet) + one quarter the average crown spread (in feet). Or, in an algebraic formula: x + y +…
