Landscaping and landscape ecology in the management of tree plantation. A reference to the city of Medellin, Colombia

The paper constitutes a reflection around the urban landscape, whit reference to Medellin, likewise around the landscaping and ecological potential that the city has along its terrain, its empty lots, without urbanizing, and especially, thanks to the tree plantation that its streets display. It is questioned the absence of a landscaping dimension in the urban planning; the increasing deterioration of the panoramic qualities; and the gradual loss of green spaces. At the same time, it is emphasized the importance that such tree planting has in the landscape, from the visual, social and environmental point of view. The work discusses the tendency to the artificiality of tree planting on sidewalks and vial road separators, raising conceptual limitations associated to the scale tree to tree, to the lack of incorporation of ecological landscape relations related to its handling, and to the landscaping approach within the framework of the urban designing. The reflection leans on data of the concrete situation, suggesting the complementary role that the vegetation could accomplish in streets and avenues with a perspective of ecological connectivity of the landscape