tree service canada #18 summer 2011

Volume 5 Issue 2 SUMMER 2011 $5.00

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BY J E F F R E Y C A R T E R

There are a couple of big challenges facing the tree care in-dustry across North America. Peter Wild, a speaker at the Soils and Urban Trees Confer-ence in Toronto this spring, believes pressure from climate change, exotic insects and diseases are on the rise. In addition, in dealing with those issues, arborists and other tree specialists will need to shift to “organic” solutions.

Wild operates Boston Tree Preservation and is the CEO of Arborjet, Inc. — a company marketing a trunk injection system and product formulations.

“We have opened up Pandora’s Box through global trade. We have moved these insects around the globe and they do not have the natural predators to keep them in check,” Wild says.

“In the past 10 years we’ve spread more around then prob-ably the previous 50.”

Wild’s experience in the Boston area over the past four decades is likely not all that different from other locations in Eastern Canada.

He started a little business in the 1970s, Eager Beaver.There was plenty of work in those days with the arrival of

the Gypsy moth and an enormous snow event in 1977. Over the years there have been other pests, including the hemlock

Exotic bugs, climate change pressure urban forestGreen approach also good for business

Too much rain!Business slow for MB, SK, tree service companies in flooded areas

BY PAT KERR

Tree Service workers across Manitoba have diverse opinions on how they feel the floods have affected the industry. Some feel it is all media hype and few trees were damaged. Others gave the government inspectors tours of their tree farm from a row boat. As in real estate, it is all about location.

By late June, the precipitation levels in Saskatchewan (that will eventually drain in to Manitoba) were 215 to 245 percent of the normal for the full month. Road closures and human evacuations continued and more rain was in the forecast. One worker said 1997 was considered the flood of the century and this is worse. “People are worried about their homes and businesses. No one is checking their trees. Business is slow to start this season.” Another said, “The phone is just not ringing.”

Manitoba is a province with an excellent flood plan. They have a long history of recurrent floods with funding and established organization. In early spring of 2011, they issued their annual flood advisory. Soil moisture was the highest on record since 1948 and well above the 1997 levels. Snow coverage was above average. Judging by the rain forecast they figured the flood levels would be close to the 1997 levels.

A worker at Brandon-based G’s Tree Service said, (the govern-ment) “was excellent at controlling the flood waters. A lot of homes and stores would have been lost if the control was not done.” Only a few trees were cut for the sand bag dikes and the cool spring temperatures were protecting the rest trees. The majority of the tree Mobile app for tree

identificationLeafsnap.com aims to add to tree science BY PAT K E R R

Every professional tree service worker knows trees of a single species can have different shaped leaves while trees of different species sometimes have quite similar leaves. This makes identifica-tion by leaf challenging, even for experts. No one is more aware of this problem then the people at the computer science departments at Columbia University and the University of Maryland. They dreamed

The Tree-äge system from Arborjet, Inc. was introduced as an emergency registra-tion in the US a couple years ago and it is now being widely used south of the border.

“This is the worst flood ever.

There is a lot of standing water.

I don’t think a lot of the trees will

survive.”

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COVE R

woolly adelgid, winter moth, southern pine beetle and emerald ash borer, along with numerous storms, including Hurricane Gloria, Hurricane Bob and the April Fool’s Day ice storm in 1997.

From his days as a chainsaw-slinging arborist Wild has shifted toward keeping trees in place. While his Arborjet business involves the use of chemical pesticides, he believes the organic approach is the wave of the future.

“It’s not a fad . . . . I truly believe we will have to move away from nitrogen fertilizer and we’ll have to move away from salt-based pesticides . . . . We will develop a trend toward biology, toward macro and micro nutrients and toward finished compost.”

A challenge in this is balancing the needs of urban trees and the environment a large percentage of them live in — lawns.

Wild is taking the Soil Foodweb approach, a business developed by Dr. Elaine Ingham in

Oregon State. He’s now been making compost, worm castings extract and compost teas for several years Inputs include leaves, wood chips, humate, fish byproducts and kelp.

The key is to encourage the right biology in the soil for a healthy environment in which both the lawn and trees can flourish.

Wild says there’s a potential for profit in the approach. Companies offering plant health services can expect margins in the 60 to 70 per cent range, he says.

One challenge is to convince customers to buy into a multi-year process; it takes time to convert.

The use of compost and numerous applica-tions of compost tea are part of the program.

“You may be able to get some people to do seven applications throughout the year. They may want three or four or they may want just one or two and then you talk them into more . . . . Ninety-nine per cent of families that get

started on the organic program stay with it.”

Wild sees the potential for a net-work of compost and compost tea pro-duction facilities, each serving several tree service companies.

For his own tree service company, Wild takes a lean approach. There are about a dozen employees working in the field and a focus on plant health as opposed to tree removal.

An important part of marketing is maintaining a database of about 20,000

customers of which about half are served in any given year. The customers are provided with promotional and educational mailings.

Boston Tree Preservation is viewed as a green business, with its emphasis on natural tree solutions, a fleet of vehicles fuelled with biodiesel produced on-site and a wood-chip heating system for the 100,000 square foot facility.

Wild says company employees occasion-ally receive complaints — usually related to customers having a bad day rather than any shortcoming in service.

“I always try to take the attitude of viewing these situations as a personal challenge to leave them laughing and to sell them something . . . . They’re a huge opportunity for sales.”

To learn more about Wild’s business, visit the Boston Tree Preservation website. The Soil and Urban Trees Conference was presented by Urban Forest Innovative Solu-tions, a tree service product distributor near Toronto. n

Affordable EAB treatment could be on its wayBut don’t place your order just yet. . . BY J E F F R E Y C A R T E R

There’s an affordable chemical solution for the Emerald ash borer (EAB) in urban trees but it’s not coming to Canada anytime soon.

The Tree-äge system from Arborjet, Inc. was introduced as an emergency reg-istration in the US a couple years ago and it is now being widely used south of the border.

The active ingredient, Emamectin Benzoate, is from Syngenta. Arborjet devel-oped a patented formulation that’s systemic and does not harm the tree it’s injected into.

“There is a possibility of it (coming to Canada). It’s just going to take some time. The requirements for approval in Canada are more stringent . . . . It could take a year or two,” Sean Facey, the support services manager with Arborjet, says.

Facey says Tree-äge is unlikely to stop the spread of the EAB in natural areas but can provide affordable protection to ash trees in an urban setting.

To provide some idea of the potential cost, he talked of plans to inject thousands of ash trees in the City of Milwaukee. The municipality is paying about $17 per tree for the formulation but there are additional costs associated with injecting the prod-uct.

The cost for the treatment of an individual homeowner’s tree would be consider-ably higher.

The Environmental Protection Agency label indicates Tree-äge provides residual control for the EAB for up to two years. However, Arborjet claims as much as 100 per cent control over four years with a single injection.

There was a label expansion on April 11. Tree-äge is now registered for Mountain Pine Beetle, Engraver Beetle, Pine Cone Seed Bug, Western Pine Beetle, Western Spruce Budworm, Tussock Moth, Gypsy Moth, Winter Moth, Bronze Birch Bore and several others.

Arborjet founder and CEO Peter Wild was at the Toronto Botanical Gardens for the Soils & Urban Trees Conference presented on April 26 and 27.

Using just water, Wild demonstrated the company’s trunk injection system on a big willow tree. It’s a matter of drilling a hole to the proper depth, tapping in one of the company’s plugs through which materials can be delivered to a tree’s xylem layer.

The plus design minimizes “blow back” so product isn’t wasted.For EAB control, Arborjet suggests Tree-äge be used from May through October

when the trees are most active. Larval damage is most acute from August to October.It can take anywhere from hours to weeks for injections to move throughout the

tree. Most trees are protected within a few days.Arborjet literature supports trunk injection as a way to treat trees with a mini-

mum of environmental exposure.Along with Tree-äge, the company markets other injectable insecticides, fungi-

cides and nutritional products.Urban Forest Innovative Systems is the sole distributor for Arborjet in Canada.

To learn more visit the company website at www.ufis.ca.

Peter Wild operates Boston Tree Preservation, a “green” business with an emphasis on natural tree solutions, a fleet of vehicles fuelled with biod-iesel produced on-site and a wood-chip heating system for the 100,000 square foot facility.

Exotic bugs, climate change pressure urban forest continued from cover

“It’s not a fad . . . . I truly

believe we will have to move

away from nitrogen fertilizer

and we’ll have to move away

from salt-based pesticides.”


www.treeservicecanada.ca

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COVE R

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of a solution that would allow everyone to contribute to tree science.

However, the computer scientists with their technical abilities needed a partner with expertise in tree botany. They joined with the Smithsonian Institution in Wash-ington DC to use the Smithsonian’s leaf collection. (This collection, started in 1848, is now among the top ten plant collections in the world.)

The original concept was to make it easier for amateurs to assist in the identification and location of rare trees in New York. However, as word spread, the need to locate and identify trees around the world became obvious.

The free mobile app was downloaded 150,000 times in its first month. Although it is currently only expected to have all the trees of the north eastern US included by this summer, collectors and naturalists

have started using it all the way to the west coast.To use the program go to leafsnap.com and

download the free app. (If it doesn’t match your pro-gram they ask for patience. They are working on it.) Pick a leaf and place it flat on a white background and digitally photograph it. The program will search the data base and identify the most important char-acteristics. Data is then provided about fruit, bark and other attributes to allow the viewer to make the final identification.

You can look through the field guide without an internet connection but you do need a signal to add to the data base or even identify the leaf you have photographed.

Users can add to a growing data base of maps locating trees allowing anyone and everyone to con-tribute to tree science. n

Mobile app for tree identificationcontinued from cover

Too much rain continued from cover

The program will search the data base and identify the most im-portant characteristics.

damage was to riparian trees along the river and in back yards.However, as summer temperatures are arriving and another crest is happening the mood is chang-

ing. One worker from Clear Lake said, “This is the worst flood ever. There is a lot of standing water. I don’t think a lot of the trees will survive.”

Matt and Fred Driedger from Evergreen Valley Nursery had 38 to 40 acres of their tree nursery under water. The trees were from two to ten feet high. They had two days warning their land was to be flooded. “We didn’t try to move any trees. The house was in danger. It was our priority. We had two inches in the basement for about ten hours. We pumped it out.”

The inspector arrived at Evergreen Valley with bad news. Yes, there is money for flood damage. But no there is nothing to cover agricultural crops. And yes the inspector was aware that there is no insurance for horticultural crops including all tree farms. His advice was to “fight it.”

Matt responded, “I am not going to give up. I will get coverage some how.” n

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Eighth pageTree Service CanadaSpring 2011

Growing your business with confidence Part 1 of a 10 part series aimed at small to medium sized businesses. If you have just started your own business recently, congratulations and I wish you much success. Most of us who have started a business have given a great deal of thought to why we want our own business and how we think we can build it into a successful enterprise over time.

It is essential to be clear on why you have started the business. Many of us wanted to be an independent entrepreneur; to have the ability to make critical decisions in a timely manner; to build wealth and provide a good living for ourselves and families.

There are predictable growth stages most businesses go through and most require the owner-operator to make decisions that can determine the success or failure at each stage. In addition, these decisions invariably involve money and people, both of which you need in proper balance to achieve sustainable growth. Forecasting the business growth and knowing when to add new equipment and more people is, and always will be, a challenge to “do it right” and in a timely manner.

There are some fundamental business principles about debt servicing ratios that most accountants and financial institutions can give you guidance on when it comes time to making capital investments for equipment. The investment in human resources is usually driven by the physical capacity you are willing to take on yourself and where your value to the company lies. For example, if developing sales is your strength then hiring a technically competent person to do the work may be a good business decision over time. Too many entrepreneurs try to do it all and end up working 16 hours a day seven days a week and that is the first clue the business is not sustainable in its present state!

Something we all know too well is that the arboriculture industry has seasonal swings that affect sales, cash flow and the ability to hire and retain qualified employees. I see this struggle throughout the industry’s small and large companies. Some have found ways to manage the highs and lows and remain profitable year round; others have found innovative ways to deal with the seasonality.

In this series of ten short articles, I want to focus on a number of topics that I have seen arise in my 11 years as a business consultant and offer some action points for you to consider. You may discover, as most of us do, that you are not alone in your business development breakdowns, set-backs, frustrations and challenges. I am confident you will not only see an opportunity to do something that will ultimately save you time, frustration and money, but you will also see that you are doing many things right.

Neil Thiessen is a semi-retired entrepreneur and the senior business partner at Able Business Consulting and GT Associates. He has over 30 years of experience working for large and small (start-up) businesses. Neil has been an owner of small and fast growing businesses that exposed many of the opportunities he sees for today’s new entrepreneurs.

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If developing sales is

your strength then hiring

a technically competent

person to do the work

may be a good business

decision over time.

As the climate heats up city arborists step it upBut change means opportunityBY S H I R L E Y BY E R S

The drought of the last decade or so has taken its toll on Edmonton’s trees but Jenny Wheeler, Principal of Forestry, city of Edmonton says her department has taken a positive approach to a challenging situation. “It’s pushed us to trial new things. Rather than looking at it as a problem we’ve looked to see what opportunities are created.”

Drought, prolonged over more than a decade, has fried many poplars in Alberta’s Central Parkland as well as aspens and balsam poplars in Edmonton. From 2001 to 2010 the city removed 3000 to 6000 trees each year, three to ten times more than usual. Stunted growth and spikes in insects and disease, drought’s inevitable companions, exacerbated the situation.

Along with extra water and making sure the trees were pruned properly, city arborists collaborated with other municipal departments. De-chlorinated swimming pool water was tested, and when found acceptable, used to water trees. Citizens were asked to supply extra water to trees in their area.

Creative watering methods such as the gator bag and the ooze tube were tried on newly established trees. The ooze tube fits around the base of the tree like a giant donut while reusable gator bags look like a green cone wrapped around the base of the tree. Both trickle water like a soaker hose and both were found to be satisfactory.

Public education was a big part of the strategy as was experimentation with new tree varieties.

“We trialed different trees to see how they would do in the Edmonton area,” Wheeler says. London plane, which has been grown successfully in BC, didn’t work out but honey locust, a rapidly growing, pollution-tolerant mid-sized tree is thriving.

In 2011 moisture levels are still below normal, deep water wells are still low but things are looking better. “We’ve got good spring cover and we’re going into spring with good moisture,” says Wheeler. “We’re doing a number of trials and projects and we’re in the final stages of an urban forest management plan.”

For other cities that may yet experience the hot side of climate change she offers this advice. “Look for opportunities where you can. With this climate change we may be able to trial new trees that we haven’t been able to use in the past. It’s pushed us to trial new things. Rather than looking at it as a problem we’ve looked to see what opportunities are created. Develop a plan to work collaboratively with other departments such as drainage and transportation. We’re looking at the feasibility of using storm water to irrigate as well. We’d collect it to a storm water pond, filter and re-use.” n

DEALI NG WITH DROUG HT

Drought, prolonged over more

than a decade, has fried many

poplars in Alberta’s Central

Parkland as well as aspens

and balsam poplars in

Edmonton.

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If city trees are to flourish in the future, attitudes and techniques need to change today.

These were among the observations from William Bryant Logan and James Urban at the Soils & Urban Trees Conference at the Toronto Botanical Garden on April 26 and 27.

The US-based Urban started out as a landscape architect and has become an author and expert in getting the most out of city soils. Logan, based in New York City, is an author and self-taught soils expert who believes Mother Nature should serve as the model in even the most disturbed of city sites.

“Soils are really living bodies; they have a history and they have a life cycle,” Logan says.

To illustrate his point, Logan cites the work of renowned soil scientist Hans Jenny who described the natural forces behind the Mendocino County Pygmy Forest in Northern California.

The unique environment is located along the highest and oldest of five terraces rising from the Pacific Ocean.

Jenny determined that the downward migration of soil nutrients created an environment of shallow, nutrient poor, highly acidic soils over a layer of an iron-clay hardpan. Two conifer species predominate. They may live hundreds of years but only reach of height of one or two metres.

New approach called for urban treesPoor rooting environments too often the cause of death

James Urban says a common mistake made by the nursery industry is to plant trees too deep.

“When it rains, you get this 2.6 pH acid soup,” Logan says.

On some of the other terraces and along adjacent slopes there are redwoods hundreds of feet tall growing on soils capable of sustaining their massive biomass.

Logan says the Pygmy forest soil, like all soils, is the result of the interplay of five different factors — climate, organic matter, slope, parent material and time.

In cities, of course, the goal is to support much larger trees than those of the Pygmy forest. Logan had an opportunity to view a relatively undisturbed site in the botanical gardens that can do that. Unlike most city soils, there were distinct soil layers as laid down by nature and despite considerable pedestrian traffic it’s a place where trees can thrive with a minimum of fuss. That’s not the situation with most urban soils. Typically, they’re highly disturbed and in other instances have been artificially placed by people with a poor understanding of what’s needed to grow big healthy trees.

Fortunately, trees have a remarkable ability to adapt to less than ideal situations.

The answer to poor urban soils lies as much within the philosophic realm as the practical, Logan feels. Rather than imagining a virtual landscape and attempting to make it a reality, consideration to the natural needs of plants, people and other living things should be part of the planning, he says.

Urban agrees and he didn’t take long to find examples of what not to do in an urban setting.

In a gravelled area next to a walkway at the Toronto Botanical Garden, he grasped a young tree and pushed it back and forth to assess its rooting system.

The prognosis wasn’t encouraging. Urban says the best course of action would be to rip out the entire area and start over.

To learn more, Urban used a Dutch auger to take a look at the soil profile. There was four inches of a fine aggregate material on top, a granular B type material underneath and then hardpan.

“This is not a rooting environment,” he says.The fine aggregate material wasn’t a great

concern but beneath the gravelly material needs to be replaced with good soil to a depth of about three feet. This should be compacted to a Proctor Density of about 70 to 75 per cent.

In addition, the interface between the underlying hard pan and any replacement soil — two distinct layers — should be broken up to allow for better drainage. This could be achieved by dragging the teeth of a backhoe over the clay layer before adding the good soil on top.

“Whoever designed this probably put a lot more thought on the colour of the gravel but gave no thought to the health of the trees they planted,” Urban says.

William Logan describes the soil profile of relatively undisturbed site at the Toronto Botanical Garden.

“I’d rather kill the tree now

instead of having it be killed

by girdling roots in another

20 years . . . The tree nursery

industry needs to reintroduce

root pruning at each step.”

continued on next page


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Good spring safety-wise, changes to ON and AB guidelines Few injuries were reported this spring in the tree service industry.n Saskatchewan had one lost time back injury after the employee

slipped off a piece of equipment and landed on a wood pile.n In south west BC, a landscape worker suffered bilateral heel

fractures and was hospitalized after attempting to dismount from a roof. His rope let go and he fell to the ground, landing on his feet. He was wearing the proper fall protection equipment but it was improperly set up.

n In Nova Scotia a chipper kicked back while a worker was pushing a piece of wood through, striking the worker’s hand.

Alberta announced the next stage of their get tough on safety infractions plan June 2, 2011. “Effective July 1, Alberta employers who experience on-site fatalities, serious injuries or multiple stop work orders may face an immediate review of their safety accreditation.” (from a news release from Alberta Employment and Immigration)

Stricter guidelines for companies to keep their Certificate of Recognition (COR) will be put in place. Employers that are not COR holders do not receive annual Partnerships in Injury Reduction (PIR) rebates from the Workers’ Compensation Board — Alberta (WCB) and cannot bid on certain projects.”

“If a company has any of these incidents occur, it must develop an action plan focused on making improvements to the workplace. If a second incident happens within two years, the COR holder must conduct an external audit. Failure to develop a satisfactory action plan or pass the audit with a score of at least 80 per cent will result in the company having its COR cancelled. Furthermore, if a COR holder is charged under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, the WCB will hold any refunds for that year, pending the outcome of the charges.”

Alberta is also stepping up inspections focusing on the safety of young workers this spring. “Young workers represent about 17 per cent of Alberta’s workforce. From 2006 to 2010, there were 27,166 lost-time claims from workers in Alberta aged 15 to 24, accounting for almost 18 per cent of lost-time claims from all workers. There were also 37 fatalities in this age category over the same time frame. By major industry sector, the Wholesale and Retail sector had the largest number of young worker injuries, followed by the Construction and Construction Trade Services sector.”

Ontario issued a new guide, “Staying Cool When the Heat is On”. It states, “Employers must take steps to protect their employees from the effects of this hazard (heat stress).” They recommend increasing the frequency and length of rest breaks, scheduling strenuous jobs for cooler times of the day and providing cool drinking water near workers. They also advise watching smog advisories and the humidex level.

Ontario has also published their listing of upcoming “safety blitzes” although none of the blitzes specifically target the tree service industry. The blitz on personal protective equipment is from Oct 1 to 31, 2011, and assessing equipment such as ladders and elevating equipment is Aug. 1 to 30, 2011.

And for all tree service workers to remember: Seventy-six-year-old Betty Jean Bottoms was killed when a tree limb fell, striking her in the head. Alabama Police Chief Nickey Carnley was quoted saying. “A lady walked out into her yard, and a rotten oak tree’s limb broke and fell into some pine trees, causing a big pine tree limb to break, which fell and struck her in the head. “It’s sad, but it’s just one of those freak accidents.”

Walking a few feet away to a parking lot island, Urban assessed the obvious ill health of two 10-foot trees. There was a modest amount of good soil in the location but there were also sharp interfaces within the profile and a compacted layer further down.

Urban says a possible solution would be to use a backhoe to lift the soil and drop it back down again. The surface could then be rotor-tilled and replacement trees planted to the proper depth on the elevated soil. From there, the trees and soil should settle down together.

One of the trees in the island was suffering for an obvious reason. It was planted too deep and had an unnatural root system.

Urban suspects it came from the nursery with a cup-shaped root pattern and should have been rejected. Alternatively, the roots should have been pruned – a dramatic but necessary step in Urban’s eyes.

“I’d rather kill the tree now instead of having it be killed by

girdling roots in another 20 years . . . The tree nursery industry needs to reintroduce root pruning at each step.”

Urban also noted that the tree had been grafted. Whoever planted it may have mistaken the graft location as the root flare. Dirt from the tree should have been brushed away to reveal the actual root flare. Urban says anyone planting trees into an urban environment

should start with the easiest sites, make sure there’s enough soil volume, take steps to protect and reuse good soil, improve soil and drainage as necessary, leave space for the flare as the tree grows, select the tree best adapted to the site and recognize that higher upfront planting costs are likely to result in a greater long-term returns as expressed by the many benefits trees provide. n

Continued from next page

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As urban populations increase, Canadian cities are turning to municipal planners and arborists to widen the span of urban forests. Several cities across the country already value the impact urban forests have on local economies, infrastructures and quality of life.

These communities view trees as solar-powered, natural technologies that restore the bal-ance of dysfunctional urban ecosystems. They are shifting the focus of trees from a beautifi-cation tactic to a solution for long-term sustainable communities.

With a focus on “return on investment,” planners can make strong cases to funders for robust urban forest projects. Urban forests are being presented as a key solution for mitigat-ing excess storm water, alleviating energy shortages, improving air quality, protecting global climate, enhancing public health programs, increasing land values, and augmenting local tax bases.

“Areas with tree canopy are energy and money savers. They reduce pollutants and heat. The second benefit is healthy living. People like to retreat to parks. All of this creates com-munity equity,” said Jason Doyle, Director of Forestry for the City of Toronto.

According to the City of Toronto, the city’s tree canopy is a vital asset valued at $7 bil-lion, with approximately 20 per cent forest cover representing 10.2 million trees. The benefits derived from the urban forest significantly exceed the annual cost of management — trees in the city provide the equivalent of at least $60 million in ecological services each year.Bio-utility in Toronto’s Bloor Street project

“Trees have an economic benefit for the business realm. They create a more enjoyable environment,” said Mike Major, Manager for the City of Toronto Business Improvement Area (BIA) Office.

Major and his team have incorporated this urban forest philosophy into one of the city’s economic development projects, a high-end retail shopping district, called the Bloor Street Project. The Bloor-Yorkville BIA partnered with the City of Toronto to transform a nine-block corridor of Bloor Street between Church Street and Avenue Road.

A large tree canopy over wide sidewalks is the central design focus. Rather than replacing the boulevards with the standard concrete curbs and sidewalks, Bloor Street had extensive tree plantings, widened granite sidewalks, seasonal flowerbeds and attractive up-lighting for each tree.

“Trees were an important project policy right away, and they became part of the utility infrastructure,” said Mike James, Canadian District Manager for Deep Root Partners.

The retrofit streetscape project involved design work to plant trees around existing underground utilities. Using an underground system, called the Deep Root Silva Cell, planners figured out how to provide 30 cubic meters of soil volume per tree that will support individual tree longevity while being compatible and convenient for utility repairs. The underground system also manages storm water runoff and supports hardscapes around trees.

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The University of Calgary filled a heavy concrete space with a green oasis of 18 trees. The trees were installed using a sustainable underground planting system to support long-term tree growth and manage storm water runoff.

Stormwater management with treesBioretention a long-term optionSpring thaws and thunderstorms underscore the need for city managers, building developers, civil engineers, landscape architects and architects to integrate effective, low-impact stormwater management strategies into their projects.

A long-term planning model for the urban forest, focused on trees 50 years and older, can be implemented and become a solution to water runoff. “Green utilities” such as trees planted in a bioretention soil mix can mean a higher upfront investment, but offer substantial savings over the long-term. As a tree matures, the environmental benefits it provides increase exponen-tially.

A Lifecycle Cost-Benefit Analysis by The Kestrel Design Group compares the costs and benefits of planting trees in a traditional 1.2 meter x 1.2 meter tree opening versus in 305 cubic meters of a bioretention mix in a suspended pavement system. The calculations were made using i-Tree software and based on data for trees in Minneapolis, MN.

The average tree in urban environments dies within 13 years due to insufficient soil volumes for root growth. Consequently, they are never able to make a significant ecological contribution to their community, and are replaced constantly. This cycle of planting and replacing trees is expensive and wasteful, especially when one considers the average lifespan of a healthy tree is 100+ years and that the benefits of full-grown trees are considerable and quantifiable.

“We need to do things differently if we are to pass along the most valuable environmental benefits to future generations,” says Peter MacDon-agh of the Kestrel Design Group. “A new way can save time, money and resources down the line. And a life cycle cost analysis can help determine the best course to take.”


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The urban tree project at the University of Calgary utilized the Deep Root Silva Cell System, a modular building block for delivering soil volumes to trees under paving like sidewalks and parking lots

“Our past practice was to put a tree into the sidewalk, and they either die quickly or don’t get to full maturation. In order to allow for the healthy growth of trees, the Bloor Yorkville decided to invest for proper soil volume, allowing the tree to live longer,” said Major.

Learning environment at the University of Calgary

Tree longevity is a strategy for the project planners at the University of Calgary. Their mission was to create a sustainable “green oasis” of 18 trees amid a large concrete area across from the new engineering building.

An underground tree planting system helped achieve all of the project goals, including shade for cooling, pavers for filtering storm water through underground soil, water collection to recharge the aquifer, and removal of elements(such as phosphorous and nitrogen) in the refurbished water supply.

“We take care in tree selection and planting. Elm trees were planted first, but more trees will be installed for project completion this summer,” said Michael Magnan, environmental designer for O2 Planning and Design.

Fast lane for trees in Kelowna

In Kelowna, trees were adopted as a valued infrastructure for a roadway median project. Project planners and engineers wanted an eye-pleasing four lane bypass with a median in the middle of the two roadsides.

With such an intense hardscape, they needed deeper soil volume for trees to grow to a medium size. A soil system was installed under the median in a trapezoid shape.

In addition to on-site storm water management, the trees break up the monotony of the highway and provide a soothing green feature.

These three Canadian municipal projects all recognized that trees deliver greater results with larger canopies. In order to get larger canopies, planners need to provide trees with adequate soil volumes. As they get serious about doing it, the science of accomplishing it gets stronger. n

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Integrated tree & work risk assessmentA review of documentation and due diligence

In an industry that has many fatalities and serious injuries it is important to plan your work and work your plan. Planning is the fundamental strategy to avoiding accidents. After all, an accident is really just an unplanned event. Assessing risks and making plans to minimize and reduce risk is how safety is improved.

In my next series of articles I will address techniques and strategies for assessing a tree for overall structural strength and stability. This will include methods of evaluating individual limbs or sections of a tree to be used for anchorage or support such as for climbing or rigging points prior to work.

As tree workers and particularly for those who climb and/or remove trees by rigging, the assessment of the strength of anchor and rigging points is an important consideration for multiple reasons. The most significant reason is that as a climber you are attaching your climbing line or lifeline to a certain point or section of a tree and if it fails unpleasant consequences can result. We regularly attach rigging lines and/or lifelines to non-rated anchor points, and in almost all jurisdictions this is in contravention to basic occupational health and safety rules and legislation.

Arboriculture is not the only industry that relies on temporary non-rated anchors and therefore many of the occupational health and safety regulations provide options for these situations. The most common way that regulatory bodies address these variables is to say that a field test should be performed to ensure the soundness, strength or stability of the temporary anchor points.

This article will discuss some practical methods for evaluating if a tree is secure and stable and I also plan to describe techniques for assessing selected anchor points for strength and stability.

As working arborists we should evaluate the tree and anchor points to determine if they are strong and secure prior to commencing any work. This is done by performing some type of assessment, including visual assessment. In the process of performing a visual assessment inductive and deductive conclusions are drawn. Experience, training and education all play major roles in the conclusions drawn. In some cases a more advanced assessment is warranted, such as a sounding, drilling or pulling. It is from this process that work plans should be formed.

Always include all workers in the assessment and planning process, because everyone’s experience and knowledge is unique, valuable and important to consider in making work plans for the tasks to be performed. The more all workers are informed of the plan for the job, the better. Get everyone on the same page, so to speak. This helps everyone learn.

Keep in mind that documenting or making some kind of record of the assessment is as important as doing the assessment itself. Documentation or records provide evidence that an assessment was performed and create a record showing that risk assessments and work plans are a standard operating procedure. Documentation is necessary to prove due diligence compliance in the event an investigation is ever done due to an unfortunate mishap.

I always look for more tools, methods and techniques to help me evaluate trees for overall structural integrity and the security of rigging or anchor points prior to climbing or rigging. Learning methods, techniques and lessons from others and trying new things is what has helped me expand my mental toolbox.

Always visually evaluate every tree and site prior to work and when necessary utilize more advanced assessment strategies. This is especially recommended when using the tree for anchorage or support. It is not always necessary to document the work plan for each tree on a work site, however an overall work plan that includes an emergency plan is

It is a good idea to include all workers in the assessment and planning process, because everyone’s experience and knowledge is unique, valuable and important to consider in making work plans.

During an inner perimeter survey the tree should be individually inspected around the base, looking for signs of risks such as lack of pedestal flare, evidence of rot and splits or cracks.


TECH N IQUE S

necessary for every site. Take into account the address or location of where you are at and discuss how you would explain to someone how to get exactly to your location if needed in the event of an emergency.

Select someone on site to be the single point of contact, or as I like to say, ”SPOC.” This person acknowledges that they will help any crew member who may need help of any kind. The SPOC should also have current first aid credentials and know exactly where the first aid supplies are, and ideally have knowledge of the area in relation to the closest hospital and the directions, street names and addresses to get there or direct someone to the work site. A method of communication is also necessary. In remote areas a test to confirm communication service should be performed.

All potential risks should be discussed and reduced where possible and all workers on site need to acknowledge the planning process by signing the documents or records, or at minimum verbally verifying that they understand the risks and work plan.

Risk assessment and subsequent work planning discussion and documentation is the primary factor in

being safe, prepared and in compliance with occupational health and safety regulations and due diligence requirements at the work site.

Basic visual assessment should begin with an outer perimeter survey where the tree(s) to be worked on are visually inspected from a distance and the overall work site and location evaluated for hazards and safety. An outer perimeter survey involves walking around the entire site and trees when possible, looking at the tree and site from a 360 degree perspective. Look for things like dead scaffolds, wildlife habitat, and site specific obstacles.

The next step is an inner perimeter survey in which the trees are examined more closely. The tree should be individually inspected around the base, looking for signs of risks such as lack of pedestal flare, evidence of rot and splits

or cracks, to name a few.The use of a form or guideline is recommend as this

helps facilitate the assessment process and can serve as the documentation that proves or verifies that the assessment process took place and the accumulation of these documents provide the evidence needed to show that risk assessments, work and emergency plans are regularly performed.

All assessments must be grounded — explained or justified — in order for them to be valid. Grounding is needed in order to develop strategies to manage and reduce the evaluated potential risks.

In my next article I will discuss techniques to help workers perform assessments that can help reveal or more clearly expose the severity of risk potential in specific locations within the tree. This will aid in determining the structural stability of the tree and potential anchor or rigging points. Dwayne Neustaeter is President of Arboriculture Canada Training & Education Ltd.

An outer perimeter survey involves walking around the entire site and trees when possible, looking at the tree and site from a 360 degree perspective.

An outer perimeter survey involves walking around the entire site and trees when possible, looking at the tree and site from a 360 degree perspective. Look for things like dead scaffolds, wildlife habitat, and site specific obstacles.



Paul Stamets has a twist on the old adage — you can’t see the forest for the trees. When the renowned mycologist is in a wooded area, there’s a good chance he won’t see the trees for the fungi.

His preoccupation with moulds, mushrooms and other members of the Fungi Kingdom is grounded in his concern for the planet.

Fungi are an inextricable part of all ecosystems and the way Stamets sees it harnessing their potential is crucial to the survival of humankind.

“We’ve entered what’s been described as the Sixth Extinction. What makes it unusual is that it’s being caused by a single organism — us,” Stamets says.

Not only are forests home to many species of mushrooms, fungi are an integral part of other organisms. Endophytic fungi, for instance, are an integral part of foliage.

To illustrate his point, Stamets shows a photograph of a typical forest scene. If everything but the fungi were to be made invisible, the same basic shapes would remain.

Fungi, plants and people are interconnected, Stamets says. With the loss of forests there will be a loss of fungal species. In numerous cases, it’s been found that the immunological properties of fungi have benefits for people.

“I believe as we deforest, we’re threatening human health . . . . Ecosystems will unravel as we lose species.”

The medicinal value of mushrooms and other fungi have been recognized for millennium. Ganoderma lucidum, for instance, has been used for centuries in Japan and China to boost the body’s immune system.

“Habitats have immune systems just as humans have immune systems. Mycelia are the bridge between the two,” Stamets says.

People should also better understand the interrelationships of living things.One dramatic example is among the geothermal fumaroles in Yellowstone Park. It was

found that grasses were able to survive temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius due to a relationship with a species of curvularia fungus.

Thought was given to using the fungus to provide tomatoes with heat tolerance. In the course of the investigation, it was discovered that a virus also had a role in conferring thermal tolerance.

There are other more common examples the role fungi play in ecosystems.Fungal mycelia are the vegetative part of fungi which form a kind of network in the

ground — Stamets calls it the earth’s internet. They take in oxygen and expel carbon dioxide.

“The mycelium, when they come to the surface, act like a lung . . . This is cold carbon dioxide so it hugs the ground — it’s important to plant growth.”

Fungi also act as a gateway species, starting the process of decomposition. In the Pacific Northwest, for instance, they’ve played a crucial part over the past 10,000 years in building soils to the point that they can support towering forests.

Unfortunately, in the past 100 years, humans have depleted those soils by repeatedly removing and/or burning the biomass.

“It took 10,000 years to get topsoil that supports the cathedral forest of the Pacific Northwest . . . . Our current practices of robbing the carbon bank six times in the past 100 years is ecologically and economically unsustainable . . . . In many places the land is no longer productive for lumber.”

Stamets says there are ways to harness the power of fungi to help deal with environmental issues.

At Chernobyl, for instance, it’s been found that the mushroom Gomphidius glutinous was able to take up and concentrate radioactivity.

Another opportunity is the use of fungi mycelium to alleviate the damage from oil spills or to be used as the agent in “myco-filtration” systems to deal with E. coli and other pathogens.

Stamets has designed a number of systems, including one for the BP oil spill. He was able to make living booms of straw floats inoculated with mycelia from salt-tolerant Oyster mushrooms. These could serve to contain spills and also break down the hydrocarbons.

Stamets spoke at the Soils & Urban Trees conference in Toronto on April 26 and 27.To learn more about Stamets and his ideas, visit this website at www.fungi.com.

Statmets and his wife Dusty operate a business — Fungi Perfecti, LLC in Washington State. They promote mycological landscaping, the cultivation of exotic mushrooms as beneficial companions to plants in gardens, lawns and woodlands. n

NATU RAL R E L ATION SH I PS

Linking fungi, forests and human healthUnderground life is “the earth’s internet”

Paul Stamets holds an example of the globally rare Agarikon mushroom from the Pacific Northwest, a fungi reputed to have several medicinal applications.

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It didn’t take long for tree specialists to come up with a diagnosis for a massive Black Walnut at the Toronto Botanical Gardens.

The group, led by plant pathologist Dr. Olaf Ribeiro, was participating in the Soil & Urban Trees Conference on April 27, an event sponsored by Urban Forest Innovative Solutions.

“This tree was probably here when this was still a farm 100 years ago,” noted Stephen Smith of Urban Forest Associates.

That’s not all that long for a black walnut which, under good conditions, can live to more than 200 years.

This particular tree was showing signs of stress — notably a horizontal crack on the northeast side, opposite to the prevailing wind.

Ribeiro uses a penny to conduct a simple test. By placing it in such a crack and leaving it for a few weeks, he can sometimes determine the direction of pressure. If the penny has fallen, it’s likely the crack is widening. If it’s still in place, the opposite may be true.

The determination may provide some direction in regard to pruning the tree. With too much foliage growth, the condition of the crack could worsen.

Another above-ground evaluation is related to the presence of static cabling in the branches. This type of system has fallen out of favour in most jurisdictions since it can create excess tension as the tree ages rather than providing the intended support for major branches.

The biggest concern for the tree, however, appeared to be below-ground. The placement of an underground drain next to Wilket Creek had likely caused root damage.

Another consideration was the lack of light-coloured, healthy feeding rootlets around the base of the tree.Smith, who’s familiar with the area of Toronto, says city foresters likely assess the tree intermittently and,

if it appears not to be posing any danger, simply leave it alone.Ribeiro says he’d go further, removing grass for five or six feet from around the base of the tree and

replacing it with mulch and supplying some biological stimulation.Ribeiro says the best way to support tree health is to enhance the biological environment in which it’s

located. There needs to be a balance between soil water, oxygen, nutrients and soil life.Mulch holds a variety of benefits, conserving moisture, increasing microbial activity, suppressing

pathogens, moderating the soil temperatures, suppressing weeds and supplying a food source to the trees.Attempts to treat the tree directly though such means as delivering commercial nitrogen to the root zone

is usually a bad idea, he says.Excess soil nitrogen can increase soil borne disease pressure. Better to deliver required nutrients through

the soil biology, Ribeiro says. n

Treating massive Black WalnutPrescriptions for extending life include biological stimulation

Participants in the Soil & Urban Trees Conference at the Toronto Botanical Gardens take a close look at a black walnut.

This particular tree was showing signs of stress

— notably a horizontal crack on the northeast

side, opposite to the prevailing wind.


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A former police officer for the City of London, Neal White, 56, began his arborist career on days off and holidays about 10 years ago and has been full time during retirement, often working six days a week. He says he sees himself as a small fry in the arborist industry with just a stump grinder and a dump trailer along with an assortment of saws for all occasions. “I feel very lucky to have been so successful since I rely on 'word of mouth' as my advertis-ing. I don't do anything exceptional however win alot of jobs with prompt return calls and attention to clean up,” he says. When not stump grinding or doing a tree removal Neal enjoys riding his Harley Ultra Glide or playing drums with the London Police Pipe and Drum band.

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Sept 10: Ontario ISA Tree Climbing Championship Midland, ON | www.isaontario.com

Sept 10-14: Prairie ISA Conference & Tree Climbing Championship Winnipeg, MB | www.isaprairie.com

Sept 11: Annual Quebec Tree Climbing Championship Joliette, QC | www.SIAQ.org

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Nov 17-18: Green Industry Show & Conference Edmonton, AB | www.greenindustryshow.com

BY PAT K E R R

From American agriculture to northern Canadian forests and in all our cities no one wants to return to a site and replant. It is just too expensive. However, with weather patterns changing and the potential for homeowners to “forget” to water — all too frequently plants and saplings die.

Our cities are in desperate need of a cheap method to reduce transplant stress in saplings when property owners are at the cottage, too busy or just too cheap to pay for the water.

Dr. Joanne MacDonald, a Research Scientist with Natural Resourc-es Canada is working on a “Climate change impacts and strategies for adaptation” project in Atlantic Canada. However, her idea has pressing current applications. MacDonald’s background is in BC forestry but her personal passion is urban forestry. The concept she is currently testing

Protecting trees from heat stressAgricultural product is being tested for use in trees

Joanne MacDonald (R), a research scientist with the Canadian Forest Service, inspects some seedlings with the greenhouse manager, Laurie Yeates (L), at the Atlantic Forestry Centre in Fredericton, New Brunswick.


R E S EARCH

came from a turf grass program developed to keep range grass alive in the cattle grazing areas during the hot dry Texas summers and it has applications in agriculture around the globe.

“All plants have optimum temperature and moisture ranges. Above thirty degrees many plants have difficulties. As the temperature rises physiology stops. Photosynthesis stops. Photosynthesis is very tempera-ture dependant,” said MacDonald. The same applies to drought. When moisture levels drop plants are stressed. Physiology will stop when moisture levels are insufficient.

MacDonald asked Tree Service Canada not to mention the prod-uct name, type or any details that might allow someone to guess what product she is testing on Canadian trees as she is just starting the test-ing process. However, if you buy US vegetables you may have eaten

it. It is natural. It is legal for other uses in Canada. In fact, if it does pass all the government hurdles it should provide jobs for Canadians. She is also us-ing this product only in small quantities so the cost is not likely to be prohibi-tive. “I don’t want to write papers for the sake of be-ing published. I want to see my research in use. I want to increase the chance seedlings will survive after planting,” said MacDonald.

The Canadian experiments, started in 2009, are based on assisting forestry through climate change. Eighteen hundred white spruce and lodgepole pine seedlings were tested. These species were chosen due to their national importance and the fact that some of them live on the driest sites we plant trees. There are reforestation areas in BC where it is now difficult to get any seedlings to survive due to heat/drought stress.

However, MacDonald said the product, when used in agriculture, “is known to increase water use efficiency. (Watering is needed less often.) By extension this product could be used to reduce transplant shock in ornamentals.” In other words, we know it works for grass; we will soon know how it could work for forestry so it is expected to have the same results to preserve the trees in our cities.

In the tests, the seedlings were given the product hydroponically in the green house and it was found it does work for trees. The current challenge is to determine optimum dosage, timing and the frequency of application for the trees tested.

Discussions have started with the Canadian Food Inspection Agen-cy and MacDonald hopes to be at the proof of concept stage by 2012 and doing regional trials in 2013. From there it is up to the CFIA and the government if and when we will be legally allowed to use this prod-uct when we transplant trees. n

Our cities are in desperate need of a cheap method to reduce transplant stress in saplings when property owners are at the cottage, too busy or just too cheap to pay for the water.

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