Michelle Catania
Morton Arboretum
Michelle Catania, M.S. is the green industry outreach coordinator for The Morton Arboretum. She is devoted to disseminating peer-reviewed scientific research aimed at improving tree and soil health in urban and suburban environments. She effectively provides both technical and non-technical talks and workshops to green industry professionals to encourage the integration of science-based solutions into daily work routines. Communicating the best management practices to practitioners is driven by her desire to help trees thrive in urban environments. Michelle holds a B.S. in Biologicals Sciences with an emphasis in plant science, and a M.S. in Geography with an emphasis in forest ecology and pedology.
My Sessions
The Fascinating World Under Your Feet – An Introduction to Soils and Soil Health
Room 105-106Soils are a vital component to life on earth, “There can be no life without soil and no soil without life…” – these are powerful words articulated by the late Dr. Charles E. Kellogg, founder and head of the United States Department of Agriculture’s Soil Survey from 1934-1971. Given the importance of soils in the green […]
Growing Healthy Trees in the Built Environment: A Review of Expert Remediation Techniques & Engineering Solutions
Room 102It is well understood that the built environment is engineered to support infrastructure. It is also well understood that forests support trees. Yet here we are, continually forcing a square peg into a round hole and perpetuating this incompatibility, while wondering why we have low tree establishment and high tree mortality in urban areas. Undisturbed, […]