Talking Trees with Davey Tree

Nick St. Sauveur from Cortese Tree Specialists, a Davey company, talks about when to plant a tree, what trees to plant and the best practices for tree planting.   In this episode we cover:   Why should you plant this time of year? (0:44)  Deciding where to plant a tree. (1:40)   The importance of hiring a certified arborist. (5:20)   Root pruning best practices. (6:35)   What to do for a tree that...

Sam Schunk, a trimmer from Davey’s Elmsford,  New York, office, and Libby Bower, a trimmer from Davey’s Lake Bluff, Illinois, office talk about their experiences climbing for competitions and their careers.   In this episode we cover:   What is competitive climbing? (0:35)   How Sam got into competitive climbing. (2:15)   Sam’s experience with nerves while competing and what competitions are like....

Brian Sieber, district manager from Davey’s Cincinnati, office talks about over and under watering trees, stopping transplant shock, fall planting and his favorite trees.   In this episode we cover:   2022 weather in Cincinnati (0:38)   Underwatered trees (1:10)   How the size and maturity of trees plays into drought (1:44)   Deciding when to water a tree (2:13)   Importance of watering young and...

Rich Wiland, district manager from Davey’s Naples/Fort Myers, Florida, office talks about preparing for hurricane and storm season, planting trees in Florida and his background.   In this episode we cover:   Preparing for hurricane season (0:55)  The 2022 storm season (2:00)   Rich’s background (2:25)   How Davey Tree prepares for and reacts to intense storms (3:54)   How Rich started with Davey a...

Jon Hillis from Environmental Design, Inc. (EDI) talks about what it's like to move large, historic trees as a career, such as how transplanting works, who can hire EDI and what it feels like to be a tree preserver.  In this episode we cover:   What EDI does (0:40)   Reasons to transplant large trees (2:25)   History of EDI (4:18)  Deciding what trees to move (6:05)  Can a homeowner hire EDI?...

Mike Presta from Davey’s North Austin, Texas, office talks about the impacts of drought on trees and what trees are more tolerant of drought.   In this episode we cover:   Ideal planting season (1:42)    Dealing with drought (3:55)  Drought tolerant trees (4:30)   How mulch helps with drought (9:35)   Other drought tolerant trees (10:15)   Mike’s background and favorite part of his job (12:50)   T...

Todd Sherbondy from Davey’s East Pittsburgh office talks about why your tree might be losing its leaves in late summer or early fall, as well as some underused trees he recommends we plant more often.  In this episode we cover:   How heat affects trees (1:07) Flowering crabapple (1:49) Can trees rebound? (2:48) Oaks losing leaves (3:26) When should an arborist get involved? (4:29) How often do arb...

Dan Blazer from Davey’s Southwest Milwaukee office talks about extreme weather’s impact on trees and the best practices for caring for them.   In this episode we cover:   Temperature changes and extreme weather (2:55)   Watering before winter (7:15)   Basics of mulching (9:48)   Fertilization and extreme weather (11:54)   Extreme weather’s impact on trees (13:33)   Planting with the changing weath...

Zane Raudenbush, turf and herbicide specialist within the Davey Institute, talks about fertilization, soil and caring for drought stressed lawns.   In this episode we cover:   Fertilization (0:33)   The difference between fall and spring fertilization (2:18)   Importance of a soil test (3:30)   Explanation and importance of PH (6:20)   How to deal with poor soil (8:20)   Growing grass in the shade...

Zane Raudenbush, turf and herbicide specialist within the Davey Institute, talks about best practices for maintaining your lawn during the heat of the summer. In this episode we cover:  Hot, dry weather (0:45)   Dry grass (1:36)   Transpiration (3:50)   Homeowner lawn watering (5:15)   Ideal watering conditions (6:42)   When to put grass seed down (10:16)   Best practices for grass seed planting (...

Chelsi Abbott, technical advisor for the Davey Institute, talks about common tree disease, how you can spot them and what can be done to treat them.    In this episode we cover: Fire blight (0:33)  Vascular welt diseases (2:27) Apple scab (4:28) Anthracnose (5:58) Tar spot (7:30) Breeding diseases out (9:35) How far spores can spread (10:25) Dutch elm disease (11:42) How Chelsi came to study plant...

Scott Gardner from Davey's Burnaby, British Columbia, office shares things you're doing to your trees that might actually be harming them without you even realizing it.   In this episode we cover: Vancouver's climate (0:40) Physical damage (1:40) Tying branches (3:23) Watering the correct spot (6:14) Tree topping (7:50) How Scott started his job (15:51) Scott's relationship wit...

Adam Passo from Davey's Southwest Milwaukee office talks about how to care for your trees during summer heat waves. In this episode we cover: Tree watering (0:30) How much should you water your trees? (2:44) Rain (3:23) Mulch (3:57) Volcano mulching (5:14) Planting during the summer? (7:52) Watering bags (9:12) Right tree, right place (9:55) Trees Adam loves planting (11:36) Deer resistance (...

Jason Parker from Davey's North Philadelphia office shares types of bugs that can actually help our trees and how to protect them, as well as bugs that can cause severe damage to our trees.  In this episode we cover: Spotted lanternfly (0:34) What can be done about bad bugs (6:15) Pollinators (7:54) Trees that help pollinators (9:23) Linden tree (10:32) Good bugs (12:41) Keeping your trees he...

Jay Reitter from Davey's New Jersey office tells us what you should know before you plant a tree near a house, such as species that are safe to plant close and what kind of research you should do beforehand.  In this episode we cover: Right tree, right place (0:46) Talking with the client (2:26) Tree topping and free consultations (4:07) Trees that can be planted near a house (7:10)   Hornbea...

Dan Herms, vice president of research and development at the Davey Institute, discusses what forest fragmentation is, how it affects wildlife and your community, and what can be done about it.  In this episode we cover: What forest fragmentation is and the impacts (0:33) What can be done? (3:59) Connecting of the fragments (7:21) Urban planning (8:45) How Dan started learning about forest fragment...

Lou Meyer, business developer for Davey's mid-Atlantic region, and Rob Dallmann from Davey's Chesapeake, Maryland, office talk about how to spot what's growing on your tree and if it's safe for the tree or harmful. In this episode we cover: Lichen (0:55) (17:28) Moss (6:33) Fungus (8:39) Hypoxylon canker (9:52) Shelf mushrooms (12:51) Lou's and Rob's jobs (14:07) Empl...

Jason Gaskill from Davey's Wilmington, Delaware, office talks about how to prepare your trees for summer such as checking your trees before summer storms and dealing with pest problems. In this episode we cover: Summer storms (1:13) Eliminating insect populations (6:22) PolyPhosphite 30™ (9:18) How Jason started his job (13:42) To find your local Davey office, check out our find a local offic...

Cindy Grady, regional business developer in Minnesota, talks about why you should be thinking about your trees when adding something to your yard, such as a pool, deck, patio, etc. In this episode we cover: Compaction (0:42) Preservation (2:30) Right tree, right place (3:21) (12:04) Sweet gum tree (4:10) Knowing where the roots will grow (5:49) Building a deck around a tree (7:39) Buying once (10:...

Ashley Kloes, research coordinator with the Davey Institute, talks about why Davey arborists have to consider migratory birds in their tree work, as well as some general information about migration and how you can help and feed birds in your yard.  In this episode we cover: How Ashley started learning about birds (0:38) Migratory Bird Treaty Act (2:13) Migration (7:03) What to do if you find a bab...

Tim Jackson from Davey's West San Antonio office talks about how to correctly prune flowering trees, as well as how he first learned how to prune and his favorite trees in Texas. In this episode we cover: Winter in Texas (0:50) Pruning flowering trees (1:16)  Educating clients (2:24) Lateral limbs (4:13) How Tim learned how to prune trees (4:59) Pruning apples trees (5:42) Artistic side of pr...

Dan Herms, vice president of research and development at the Davey Institute, talks about how climate change is changing your landscape, such as what climate-facing trees you should be planting, what trees you should avoid planting and how pests are migrating.  In this episode we cover: Dan's research from the 1990's (0:37) Dan's research for Davey Tree (2:51) Hardiness Zone map (4:...

Natascha Batchelor from Hartney Greymont, a Davey company, in Cape Cod, shares her favorite spring flowering trees for Cape Cod's climate, as well as how she started her career in arboriculture and why she loves it.  In this episode we cover: Weather in Cape Cod (0:55) Flowering trees in February (1:48) Spring flowering trees (3:29) Planting season in Cape Cod (5:30) Plant shortage (5:47) Win...

Sean Hoes from Davey's South Denver office shares his favorite spring flowering trees for Colorado's climate, as well some planting tips for newly planted trees.  In this episode we cover: What flowering trees grow in Colorado? (0:45) Chanticleer pear (1:24) Denver's climate (2:45) Northern catalpa (4:18) Snow crabapple  (5:50) Spring in Denver (7:23) What Sean loves about his job (...

Tom Ford from Davey's Portland, Maine, office discusses why mulch is important, how to mulch correctly and the type of mulch he uses on his property, as well as his favorite trees in Maine.  In this episode we cover: Spring in Maine (0:48) (8:33) Volcano mulching (1:20) How far out to mulch (2:31) Maples and roots (3:35) Why it's important to mulch (4:05) Compost (4:30) Landscape fabric...