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David E. Ross · 10-07-2007, 04:00 AM posted to rec.gardens

On 7/9/2007 6:32 PM, wrote:
I am not sure this is the best place to ask this question. There were
two large trees in my backyard which provided a lot of shade. I had to
have them removed, and I thought that my house would be much hotter at
night. I do not use AC. With the trees removed it seems as if the
house is cooler. The only two reasons I can come up with is that the
trees blocked evening breezes, or that the trees absorbed heat during
the day, and gave it off at night which made my house hotter at night.
Would this make sense?

I'm a docent at a showcase garden. When I conduct a tour, I always ask
the guests to grasp a leaf on one of the trees near the entrance (white
mulberry or liquidambar). The leaves are cooler than the air around
them. Trees are natural air conditioners. In the garden, shade from
the trees is cooler than shade from the picnic umbrellas or in the
Japanese pagoda.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening pages at http://www.rossde.com/garden/