POULSBO — In addition to improving businesses’ exteriors, trees can provide a different shade of green as well.

At least that’s what research by University of Washington professor Kathy Wolf has revealed in four different studies during the past eight years.

Wolf will be presenting a free seminar titled “Trees Are Good for Business” at 7 p.m. Monday at the Poulsbo Library. The event is sponsored by the Poulsbo Parks and Recreation Department and the city’s tree board.

“People are willing to travel farther to business districts, stay longer in places with trees and are willing to pay 9 to 12 percent more for their products,” Wolf said, noting those results have been consistent across the state and everywhere the research has taken place.

“More importantly, they are consistent across different types of people,” she said. “We saw the same responses time and time again.”

During the four studies, Wolf said she found people’s attitudes toward businesses in treescaped districts differed from their opinions about businesses in non-treescaped areas.

“They thought they were places with better service, were more helpful, and the products in those businesses would be better quality,” she said.

However, using trees to improve business means more than just planting one or two, she added.

“It has to be a coordinated effort that is district wide,” she said.

In Poulsbo, the widening of State Route 305 will provide opportunities for businesses to develop a plan that will create a welcoming atmosphere, she said, adding that another area of interest in the city to researchers is how small businesses are adapting to Wal-Mart and large retailers opening in the area.

“I’d like a little feedback from the community because I haven’t studied a place going through what you’re going through,” Wolf said.

Treescapes, she said, may provide a way for small businesses to stay competitive as the large retailers arrive.

Greater Poulsbo Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Stuart Leidner is encouraging business owners and community members to attend the seminar.

“I think it helps our businesses as they seek to diversify and separate themselves from their competition,” Leidner said. “It’s not only a benefit to the community but to visitors as well.”