Degradation of Quality

The economy has spawned new breed of tree cutter,(not arborist)performing low quality work at prices that are unmaintainable. Good for the consumer, not really! Poorly preformed work actually cost in the end. Trusting your trees to poorly educated and untrained tree cutters will lead to premature tree failures, ruined specimen trees and a general distrust of all tree companies. Is saving a few bucks that important?

Let's look at the risk of hiring an unlicensed, untrained tree cutter:
1. Little or no insurance
2. No work mans comp.
3. Pays no taxes (so you have to pay more)
4. Poor quality work, it's your trees!
5. Accidents due to working without any safety guidelines or training
6. Property damage some of which you may shrug off as expected
7. Lack of expertise, not an arborist, not qualified to diagnosis, treat, advise on any tree issue, not qualified to due a proper tree risk assessment.

So you have a 40" DBH Oak in your yard and the tree cutter comes and hacks off 1/2 the
branches to get some light into the lawn. Should have just cut the tree down, over the next
few years this tree will try to regrow the leaves it needs to survive. The sun will scald (like a bad sunburn) the trunk and the tree will go into a slow downward spiral of decline and death. Your prized tree. Or, there is a bleeding canker on the stem, a small crack in a crotch, a few innocuous mushrooms in the lawn and the tree cutter tells you" ah it's good tree, safe" next winter it goes through your garage crushing your new car. Try finding the tree cutter then when you want to sue. Remember you paid cash, no invoice, written estimate, no name on the truck. Better yet, a passerby is struck by a limb the tree cutter missed and your sued for their sloppy work.saved a few bucks or did you?

Rainy Spring

This spring was a little wet, fungal problems showed up early. Powdery mildew, leaf spots and anthracnose are the big 3. For the first time I can recall even American Beech has anthracnose. Once the leaves are infected not much can be done, protection for next year and keeping the tree well watered when dry and some bio stimulate may help.