Study on Stability of Individual Veteran Trees with Data Collected by GroundBased Laser Radars

The threedimensional structure of the veteran trees was measured by means of using a groundbased laser radar. The data were adopted to analyze the stability of the trees and the antibreaking properties of the main branches. The results showed that a threedimensional image of a veteran tree could be quickly constructed by using the groundbased laser radar. Compared with the regular tree measurement method, the method used in this study could reduce the measurement errors by human manipulation. The stability of the trees and the antibreaking properties of the main branches could be estimated by using the threedimensional data. Application of groundbased laser radar techniques to management of the veteran trees will be very promising.