Urban Forestry Part 6: Back in the Game!
Well, it’s been a long time since I last posted, and I have a good reason, I swear!
During the summer of 2014 I was a field hand for non-urban forest research, and due to my strict theme for this blog, I did not post anything about chipmunks, insect emergence traps, or boat motors. When I got back from the non-urban forest I spent the next year and a half working in guitar repair, which was also irrelevant to this blog; however, a few weeks ago I started a training course that will lead to me becoming an arborist’s apprentice. I'm back in the game!
Above, 2014: Cute, but not urban forestry.
A couple of weeks ago I went to the International Society of Arboriculture Ontario (ISAO) conference "Strength in Diversity: The Science of Arboriculture”. I arrived late - it started on Wednesday morning and I arrived Wednesday evening - but here are what I considered the highlights of the conference (in no particular order)!
Disclaimer - The pictures of the speakers are ones that I found on the internet. I wasn’t really using my camera much, and they would have been pretty boring, distant photos anyway.
1. Diana Beresford-Kroeger: “Family Forests: Relating to Trees” (Thursday, 8:30AM and Q&A at 1:00PM)
Diana gave us all an incredible pep talk about our role as arborists to be stewards of the forest. She talked about forests‘ role in mitigating climate change and at length about the healing qualities of trees and the importance of preserving the biodiversity of forests for medicine. She used humour and anecdote to educate us on a great breadth of topics, and I’ve never heard anyone address the sweeping complexities of forests with such grace. The stories that she told in response to people’s questions in the afternoon made it the most enjoyable Q&A session I’ve ever sat in on. I was so rapt that I think my eyeballs were floating out of my head. Do yourself a favour and read her books! At least check out her site.
Above: A picture of Diana taken from her website, dianasjourney.com.
2. Jennifer Llewellyn: “WHODUNNIT? Solving One Mystery at a Time” (Friday, 1:00PM)
Jennifer presented her talk sort of like a game show, where she posted pictures of a sick plant’s symptoms, asked the audience what they thought was wrong, and then if they gave a correct or close answer they were rewarded with a little solo cup of beer. It was incredibly informative and practical. I suppose it left out those who don’t drink, but it was a fun and engaging way to see real field examples of different types of plant pests, pathogens and damage. You can read her blog for yourself and learn quite a lot! Seriously!
Above: Jennifer Llewellyn, not sure who took this but I found it on her blog.
3. Brian French: “Ascending the Giants and the Future of Arboriculture” (Friday, 3:50PM)
I liked this presentation because, while I am very excited to be an arborist, up to this point I hadn't been able to see how it could make the best use of my degree. I mean, having a B.Sc. in Forestry certainly applies to the industry, but you don’t actually need a degree to be an arborist, and as much as nothing is ever really a waste of time, I certainly want to put my knowledge to its best use.
This presentation opened my mind to other important tasks that you can accomplish with the skills of an arborist. If you think outside the box you can think of really neat projects on your own that can be fun and also very good for the forest. Brian used the project that he is part of as an example. Ascending the Giants is a non-profit initiative to document “champion” examples of each species. In doing so, they hope that present and future generations will see how eroded our expectations of forests have become, that our forests could be even more astounding, and that letting trees reach their “champion” maturity is a worthwhile goal. Check it out! And, check out Treeverse while you’re at it!
Above: One of Brian’s team climbing a Ponderosa Pine, taken from the Statesman Journal.
4. John Ball: “Emergency Response for Tree Workers” (Friday, 2:00PM)
This was another great and practical presentation, even though it was graphic and a little hard to stomach at times. John Ball is an emergency medical technician (EMT) as well as an arborist and I think that combination allowed him to give a brilliant presentation on safety. He presented real photos of hazardous job scenarios, the results of those hazards, and how they can be prevented. I was glad that Brian spoke after John to lighten the mood, but it doesn’t mean that I didn’t love this presentation. I did. It was very practical and informative, and knowledge is lifesaving in the topic of safety.
Above: John Ball looking for Mountain Pine Beetle, taken from this website in Delaware.