Talking Trees with Davey Tree

Michael Sundberg from Davey's South East Denver office shares how he handles winter watering in Colorado's (typically) year-round dry conditions. In this episode we cover:   Winter in Colorado (1:17) Watering in all four seasons (3:55) Handing faucets in winter (4:47) How arborists water client trees (5:15), (12:37) How to know how much to water (8:19) How weather impacts arborists'...

Travis McDonald from Davey's South Minneapolis office shares advice on tree care and planting in extreme temperatures, from heat waves to cold and snow.  In this episode we cover:   Weather shifts (0:35) Irrigation during dry spells (1:31) Hardiness zones changing (2:37) Minneapolis summer (4:06)  What time should you be watering? (4:48) Watering probe (5:24) Which trees should you water? (6:...

Jason Gaskill from Davey's Wilmington, Delaware, office talks about how to carefully and safely install lights on your outdoor trees without harming them, pruning considerations to make this winter and fun story about one of the trees featured in Davey's 2024 Trees of Davey calendar, plus how you can WIN a copy!  In this episode we cover:   Staying safe while decorating outdoors (1:07) D...

Lou Meyer, business developer for Davey's mid-Atlantic region and Emily Tepe, Department of Horticulture professor at the University of Minnesota, talk with Doug about the best practices of creating an edible garden, including which trees to plant and how to handle different hardiness zones. In this episode we cover:   Emily's book: The Edible Landscape (1:08), (24:24) Edible landscaping...

Jason Parker from Davey's North Philadelphia office talks about the volunteer work he and other arborists across the country do for Saluting Branches, a non-profit organization dedicated to recognizing and honoring our veterans by doing tree work on veteran cemeteries.  In this episode we cover:   What is Saluting Branches (0:40) Jason's experience with Saluting Branches (1:01), (4:23),...

Kris Baker from Davey's Orlando office uses his experiences as an arborist in Michigan and Florida to share how arborists can help your trees in cold weather. In this episode we cover:   What arborists do for cold weather in Orlando (00:51) What arborists do for cold weather in Detroit (2:01) Why oaks and elms must be cut in cold weather (2:54) Tree care in late fall (3:42) Examining the whol...

Dan Herms, vice president of research and development at the Davey Institute, and Dan Joy, executive vice president and assistant to the president, talk about their experience leading development of the Davey Tree SEED (Science, Employee Education and Development) Campus.   In this episode we cover:   What is the SEED Campus (0:45) Dan Joy's role with the SEED Campus (1:45) Sustainability on...

Miles Stephens from Davey's South Pittsburgh office talks with Doug over their fascination with the pawpaw tree. In this episode we cover:   How Doug and Miles learned about the pawpaw tree (0:43) What is the pawpaw tree? (2:07) How to grow the pawpaw fruit (2:50) Pollinating a pawpaw tree (3:22) Pawpaw tree folktales (4:12) The pawpaw tree fruit and its flavor (5:50) How long it takes to get...

Dan Hager from Hartney Greymont, a Davey company, in Concord, talks about the fall and spring planting seasons. In this episode we cover:   When to plant a tree (0:48) Mistakes homeowners make when planting (1:16) Planting potted plants (2:00) Caring for roots in potted plants (2:38) Utilizing native soil (3:47) Planting bigger vs planting smaller (4:17) Spring planting (4:47) Watering newly plant...

Mat Garey from Davey's Detroit Lawncare office gives you a reason to not rake your yard by sharing the benefits of mulching and composting your leaves. In this episode we cover:   Do you have to rake your leaves? (0:40) Mulching leaves correctly (0:59) Mulching equipment (2:20) Benefits of leaving your leaves (2:52) How to use leaves in your garden (5:25) Protecting your trees from leaf build...

Brad McBride from Davey's West Cleveland office talks about why soil care is vital for tree health, how to check the health of your soil and what else can be done to improve it. In this episode we cover:   Making soil simple (0:35) How do you test soil? (1:57) Arbor Green PRO ® (3:10)  Two-step soil care program (5:13) Watering (6:33)  Air spading services (7:42) Vertical mulching and mulch r...

R.J. Laverne , manager of education and training at the Davey Institute, talks about what he does as a tree appraiser, including occasionally working in a courtroom.  In this episode we cover:   How to determine what a tree is worth (0:53) Why find the value of your tree? (1:43) Trees in real estate (4:55) Being an objective appraiser (7:08) What an appraiser looks for (8:34) How to quantify a tre...

Madison Law from Davey's South Houston office talks about working in locations with extreme heat and her Davey experience. In this episode we cover:   How Madison works in extreme heat (1:15) What Madison does for Davey (2:53) Houston in the winter (4:01) How Houston trees handle extreme weather (5:30) Optimal time to plant in Southern states (6:31) Live Oaks & White Oaks (8:46) Trees Mad...

Taylor Judd from Davey's East Denver office talks about important factors to consider when planting a new tree and his recommendations for the Colorado area. In this episode we cover:   Summer rain and heat stress in Colorado (0:50) Growing trees in Colorado (3:22) Should you add fertilizer when planting new trees? (4:54) Root flare (6:01) Handling a grade in your yard (6:57) Mulching new pla...

Zane Raudenbush, turf and herbicide specialist within the Davey Institute, talks about why fall is an optimal time to aerate your lawn and control your weeds. In this episode we cover:   Is fall the best time to aerate? (0:36) What to do with aerate by-product (4:09) How often to sharpen your lawn mower blade (5:21) Lawn mower blade safety (6:26) Optimal grass height (8:41) Davey's experience...

Zane Raudenbush, turf and herbicide specialist within the Davey Institute, talks about why fall is prime lawn care season and what to do during the fall to keep your lawn healthy. In this episode we cover:   Why end of summer is best for lawn care(00:51) Which cool season grass is right for me? (2:58) How dry conditions impacted seeds planed in spring (5:52) Raking turf (7:46) Managing larger area...

Matt Fredmonsky, manager of corporate content at Davey, shares his knowledge about the history of Davey Tree, from John Davey's start in tree care to the employee acquisition.  In this episode we cover:   John Davey (0:45) Davey's move to the U.S. (2:41) The Tree Doctor (4:00) Building Davey Tree (5:13) Davey's Employee Ownership (6:09) Benefits of Employee Ownership (7:48) Davey Tr...

David Horvath from Davey’s Lake Bluff, office talks about the importance of having arborists inspect your trees before a storms, so you can keep your home safe. In this episode we cover:   First thing arborists look for during storm prep (00:58) What homeowners can do to help arborists during storm prep (1:46) What an arborists is looking for (2:56) Oak Decline (3:31) The best time of year for arb...

Luke Werner from Davey's North Pittsburgh office shares how you can learn how to identify the different types of trees in your yard. In this episode we cover:   Looking at the big picture (0:53) Conifer Trees (1:33) Deciduous trees (1:53) How Luke learned to ID trees (2:03) The shape of your tree (2:40) Leaves (3:55) Evergreen leaves (4:05) Deciduous leaves (4:48) MADcap buck (5:28) Simple le...

Adam Baker, technical advisor with the Davey Institute discusses all things caterpillars, including their benefit and specific species like the hickory horn devil, bagworm and monarch. Adam also shares the silver lining of the spotted lanternfly invasion hitting the East Coast. In this episode we cover:   Most common caterpillars during each season (1:08) Is the hickory horn devil harmful? (3:00)...

 Eric Countryman from Davey's East Pittsburgh office talks about fire blight and other bacterial diseases that can impact your trees. In this episode we cover:   What is fire blight (1:06) What fire blight looks like (1:39) When fire blight is most prevalent (2:13) Treating fire blight (2:55) How to prevent fire blight (4:35) How arborists handle fire blight (6:52) Off the beaten path trees t...

Lou Meyer, business developer for Davey's mid-Atlantic region,  talks about how Davey arborist deal with wood wastes and different ways to give wood a secondary life. In this episode we cover:   Where does wood waste go? (3:37) Composting wood (5:19) Unique ways to use wood waste (6:07) Can homeowners keep their wood waste? (6:34) Biochar (7:42) Ways to use wood chips (12:55) Potential concer...

Chelsi Abbott, a technical advisor and education specialist at the Davey Institute, talks about the mycorrhizal network including how it works and how it connects to plants.  In this episode we cover:   What is mycorrhizae fungi (1:14) The beneficial relationship between the fungi and trees (1:59) Seeing mycelium in real life (4:07) How mycorrhizae fungi finds plants (4:45) How big mycorrhizal net...

Thomas Whitney, technical advisor from the Davey Institute, shares some of his knowledge on different types of pests and beneficial insects.  In this episode we cover:   What defines a pest (0:47) Pest classifications (1:45) The worst pest for trees (2:30) Which pests homeowners notice the most (4:16) Types of leaf chewers (4:52) Types of woodborers (5:56) Emerald ash borer (6:30) Thomas' fir...

Dan Cohen, from Hartney Greymont, a Davey company, in Needham, shares some expert watering tips to keep your trees hydrated all summer. In this episode we cover:   What's the first thing you think of when watering trees? (00:51) Watering newly planted trees (1:28) (5:32) How rainfall has been this season (2:51) How arborists handle dry conditions (4:00) Using tree gator bags (7:15) Watering o...