Talking Trees with Davey Tree

Don Roppolo, director of arborist training within the Davey Institute, talks about training arborists, training for safety and his Davey career.   In this episode we cover:   Why this is the job for Don (0:34)   The importance of training (1:35)   How training works (2:36)   How training has evolved (4:15)   What Don’s job is like (5:40)   How Don started in arboriculture (6:43)   Why people enjoy...

Ben Cuddeback from Davey’s Northwest Detroit office talks about winter tree care, his favorite trees and his Davey career.     In this episode we cover:   The first thing that comes to mind for winter tree care (0:45)  Trees that have to be pruned during winter (1:10)  Evergreens before and during winter (1:40)  How much to water evergreens (3:30)  Caring for new trees (4:00)  Balled and burlapped...

Lou Meyer, business developer for Davey’s mid-Atlantic region, and Rob Dallmann from Davey’s Chesapeake office talk about what to expect when an arborist visits your property and what they enjoy about their Davey careers.  In this episode we cover:   What homeowners should expect when an arborist visits (0:45)   Do most homeowners want to save their trees? (2:30)   The feeling of saving trees (7:3...

Jason Parker from Davey’s North Philadelphia office talks about what trees give us benefits, his favorite trees and what else he is thankful for.     In this episode we cover:   The different benefits of trees (0:46)   The benefits that big trees provide (1:50)   Tree planting season in Philadelphia (2:50)   Right tree, right place and diverse planting (3:30)  Jason’s favorite trees (5:50)   The d...

Mike Bova, principal consultant and project developer for Davey Resource Group (DRG), Lou Meyer, business developer for Davey’s mid-Atlantic region, Makayla Minnes, utility vegetation management technician for DRG and Josh Piquette, branch manager of the Washington D.C./Maryland Commercial Landscape Services (CLS), talk about their favorite historical properties to work on and their Davey careers....

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 the Davey Tree SEED (Science, Employee Education, and Development) Campus.   In this episode we cover:   What SEED stands for and how it was chosen (1:00)  The size of the SEED Campus and its features (1:50)  The importance of sustainability...

Isaiah Smalt from Davey’s Rochester, New York, office talks about the best practices for preparing for winter, his Davey career and his favorite trees.     In this episode we cover:   The first thing that comes to mind when preparing your trees for winter (1:10)  How watering plays into winter preparation (1:45)   Looking up and down at trees (3:55)   The importance of having a certified arborist...

Robert Spartz from Davey’s Quad Cities office talks about trees in wet areas, the importance of using a certified arborist and what employee ownership means to him while we celebrate Employee Ownership Month through the month of October.       In this episode we cover:   What Robert thinks about when encountering wet spots (1:30)   How trees can mitigate wet situations (2:17)  Right Tree, Right Pl...

Chelsi Abbott, technical advisor for the Davey Institute, talks about the positives and negatives of fungi, her Davey career and what employee ownership means to her while we celebrate Employee Ownership Month through the month of October.   To celebrate Employee Ownership Month, stay tuned to the end of each episode throughout the month of October to hear what each Davey guest enjoys about employ...

Jay Judd from Davey’s East Denver office talks about the benefits of leaves, emerald ash borer (EAB), his favorite trees and what employee ownership means to him while we celebrate Employee Ownership Month through the month of October.     To celebrate Employee Ownership Month, stay tuned to the end of each episode throughout the month of October to hear what each Davey guest enjoys about employee...

Sandee Reid, vice president of corporate communications and strategic planning, talks about NBA and MLB partnerships Davey is involved with to increase the canopy cover in Northeast Ohio, as well as what employee ownership means to her while we celebrate Employee Ownership Month through the month of October.  To celebrate Employee Ownership Month, stay tuned to the end of each episode throughout t...

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...