3 Essential Qualities of a Good Arborist

The urban forest suffers because any "dude" with a chainsaw thinks he can do the job. He can't. When things go wrong, he is nowhere to be found.

It takes plenty of skill to top a tree

Especially a big tree. It is a fact that not that many people have the skill or the experience to do it. Never mind the fitness to get up there. It can be a scary trip for a beginner.

       The climber straps on belt and spurs, throws a flip line around the trunk, hooks the chainsaw onto his belt and up he goes. Climb, stretch and pull up, over and through the branches until he reaches just the right spot. Then the owner of the tree yells up " Cut the sonofabitch right there.".

       So he finds his balance, gets hold of the saw and starts pulling on the pull cord until she's running. Slashing away some upper branches, he takes a good look around to make sure the lean is going to cooperate. 

The climber takes aim and makes his undercut, then screams out.... "Heads up". He takes one last look, readjusts his position, tightens his flip line and gets a straight arm on the top piece. With his other hand on the chainsaw it's time to tear in. Down goes the top. CRASH, right on target.

     Hands raise up in the air... "WooHoo".......

Way to go S#!tferBrains

It takes plenty of skill to top a tree...

It takes even more skill to do the right thing

The real skill is in explaining to the client the best alternative for the situation

I'm not writing this piece to be another lecture about tree topping. We can talk about that anytime. The point of this discussion is how do you tell the difference between a good arborist and a bad one.

 

Three essential qualities of a good arborist

1. Knowledge and skill
2. Passion and understanding for trees 
3. Exceptional interpersonal skill

Unless the arborist has competence in all three categories then he or she is not a good arborist.

1. Knowledge and skill 

• You just are not an arborist unless you have performed in the industry for at least 3 years, have passed a rigorous industry standard test,  maintain an ongoing commitment to further education, and adhere to a strict code of ethics. . These are the minimum standards set by the International Society of Arboriculture.

2. Passion and understanding for trees 

• Passion for trees comes from passion for place. The place where you live. The areas where most cities are located were once natural forests. Humans by our very nature are forest dwelling creatures. Trees and the environment are so interlinked that we tend to not even notice them until they are gone. Arborists understand trees. They understand that trees exist on a time scale that is greater than the duration of a human life. Arborists realize that society needs to do a better job of protecting trees.

3. Exceptional interpersonal skill

• There is one key difference between an arborist in the city and a forester in the woods. The difference is the people part. An arborist's job is not merely working with trees. The job is enabling people to live with trees. Arboriculture is about addressing the problems people have with their trees. Real or perceived. 
• If a tree falls in the forest does anybody hear?.... Who cares? But if a tree is about to fall in the city you can be damn sure someone is going to say something about it.
• People have strong feelings about their trees. They also have strong feelings about neighbours trees. Same goes for the trees that affect them in any part of the community. Arborist take the brunt of those strong feelings. The work involves conflict resolution and dealing with anger management. The arborist needs to be a good listener, an assertive communicator and an educator. 

Have you experience the feeling of having trees wrongfully damaged?

People aren't afraid to show their emotions when discussing trees. These are important discussions. Effectively dealing with hard situations is the key to determining the difference between a good and bad arborist.