Tree Experts Lebow, Buscaino, others make the case for urban tree canopy at Regional Tree and Shade Summit - Phoenix, AZ

Tree experts envision the return of Phoenix's oasis of green

In the early 1900s, the Valley was an oasis of green with lush trees sprouting tall along wide canal banks that crisscrossed Phoenix and its suburbs.

Cottonwoods, among the more common of the area's trees, dug in, drinking water that seeped from the dirt-lined canals.

By the 1950s, as families flocked to the Valley in post-World War II bliss to create a modern community, the oasis withered.

Today, only hints of the area's original vegetation remain. Among them, Murphy Bridle Path, which stretches north along Central Avenue from Bethany Home Road in Phoenix.