Stormwater Management Urged In Wake Of Hurricane Helene
Turf Editors
A Clean, Controlled Fell
Contributed by Husqvarna Cutting down a tree, also known as felling a tree, requires planning, skill, and a healthy amount of respect for your tools and the tree. Depending on the surroundings, environment, and size of the tree, it can be a potentially dangerous job that is best left to trained arborists. However, if the tree is a manageable size, a well-prepared person with the right tools can fell a tree safely and efficiently. When planning to fell any tree, some basic elements should always be followed: Be Well-Equipped – If you haven’t already done so, get adequate training for chainsaw usage. Make sure your saw is in optimal working order, with fuel, bar oil and a sharp chain, properly adjusted. Invest in personal protective equipment (PPE), including helmet, ear and eye protection, gloves, proper boots, and chainsaw-resistant chaps. Always wear PPE when operating a chainsaw. Assess The Tree – Understand the height and diameter of the tree as well as the lean, which may require different cutting techniques (more below). Understand the dynamics of tree-felling, especially what could go wrong. Examine Your Surroundings – It’s important to look all around, considering obstacles the tree could contact during the fall, the wind conditions during the job, as well as the slope of the ground you are working from. You need to plan where the tree will fall and plan your own safe escape route. A Good Start – A chainsaw is best started on the ground, with the chain ...
Arbor Day 2020: Tree Care In Tough Economic Times
Today is Arbor Day during a pandemic. And while normally, communities would be gathering to plant trees, instead many today are quietly honoring the solace nature brings in such a crisis. Unfortunately, it’s also a time of financial insecurity for many, including landscape clients. In such times, landscape maintenance can be one of the areas where people tighten the strings and reduce their budget. When working with clients, it’s important to know how to handle such reductions while still keeping a contract. Luckily, landscape maintenance is often not all or nothing. It can be difficult to advise a client where money can be saved knowing we want to do what’s best for the entire landscape. However, there are many things you can consider when reducing an annual proposal for tree health care. Is the treatment preventative or therapeutic? Is it an aesthetic issue or something more detrimental? The more variables we can consider, the easier it will be to meet a client’s budget and feel good about the choices made. Client Priorities Conversation with the client is the first place to start. Often clients have far different priorities than we may assume. For instance, it’s easy to think that an aesthetic issue, such as apple scab, would be a good place to start reducing cost compared to treatment of a more detrimental issue, such as needle cast on a blue spruce. However, ugly trees can be depressing, especially if there is a personal attachment to the tree. What if your ...
