Talking Trees with Davey Tree

Michael Sundberg from Davey's Southeast Denver office shares his favorite unique trees from the western half of the U.S., including some of his favorites in Hawaii! 

In this episode we cover:  

• Natives in Colorado (0:51)
• Aspen (1:29)
• Hawaiian trees (3:14) (16:07)
• Winter in Colorado (4:55)
• Sequoias and redwoods (6:09)
• Dawn redwood in Colorado (7:04)
• Bristlecone pine (7:27)
• Planting conifers vs deciduous? (8:38)
• Are clients typically open to unique trees? (9:53)
• Top three trees for Colorado's wacky weather (11:37)
• Catalpa (12:49)
• Kentucky coffeetree (13:14)
• Nostalgia with trees (14:25)
• Planting season in Colorado (17:17)
• Late snow in Colorado (17:54)

To find your local Davey office, check out our find a local office page to search by zip code.  

To learn more about careers at Davey, go to Jobs.Davey.com.

Connect with Davey Tree on social media:
Twitter: @DaveyTree
Facebook: @DaveyTree
Instagram: @daveytree
YouTube: The Davey Tree Expert Company
LinkedIn: The Davey Tree Expert Company 

Connect with Doug Oster at www.dougoster.com. 

Have topics you'd like us to cover on the podcast? Email us at [email protected]. We want to hear from you!

Have feedback, questions or a topic you want covered? Click here to send Talking Trees a message OR email [email protected].

Jonathan McNeil from Arborguard Tree Specialists, a Davey company, in Atlanta talks about some unique trees he's seen planted in his area, as well as how he got his start in arboriculture and why he loves it! 

In this episode we cover:  

• Unique trees in Atlanta (0:49)
• Conditions for live oaks (1:36)
• Elms in the south (3:16)
• Other unique trees (4:07)
• Red bud varieties (4:50)
• Ginkgo (5:14)
• Other unique trees (7:03)
• Chinese fringetree (8:00)
• Bradford pears (9:54)
• Sourwood (11:05)
• Sweetgum (11:59)
• Black gum (14:42)
• Ironwood (15:07)
• How Jon got started in arboriculture (15:58)

To find your local Davey office, check out our find a local office page to search by zip code.  

To learn more about careers at Davey, go to Jobs.Davey.com.

Connect with Davey Tree on social media:
Twitter: @DaveyTree
Facebook: @DaveyTree
Instagram: @daveytree
YouTube: The Davey Tree Expert Company
LinkedIn: The Davey Tree Expert Company 

Connect with Doug Oster at www.dougoster.com. 

Have topics you'd like us to cover on the podcast? Email us at [email protected]. We want to hear from you!

Have feedback, questions or a topic you want covered? Click here to send Talking Trees a message OR email [email protected].

Three students from the Davey Institute of Tree Sciences (D.I.T.S.) training program talk about the benefits of this annual four-week program, what they are learning and why they feel appreciative of the opportunity to attend D.I.T.S. Andy Grassia from Davey's Richmond office, Samuel Torres from Davey's North Philadelphia office and Santiago Valencia from Davey's utility Gulf region also discuss taking the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) Certified Arborist® exam and the fun experiences they've had in Kent, Ohio, the past four weeks. 

In this episode we cover:  

• Four-week long training (0:40) (5:20) (8:55)
• Most enjoyable part about D.I.T.S. (1:05)
• Parts of D.I.T.S. most looking forward to (1:38)
• What is taught at D.I.T.S.? (3:11)
• D.I.T.S. reputation (7:57)
• "We're all in this together" (10:35)
• International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) Certified Arborist® exam (11:22)
• Why arboriculture? (13:22)
• The fun parts of D.I.T.S.! (17:08)
• Instructor R.J. Laverne (20:02) 

To find your local Davey office, check out our find a local office page to search by zip code.  

To learn more about careers at Davey, go to Jobs.Davey.com.
To learn more about training at Davey, go to Davey.com/Training. 

Connect with Davey Tree on social media:
Twitter: @DaveyTree
Facebook: @DaveyTree
Instagram: @daveytree
YouTube: The Davey Tree Expert Company
LinkedIn: The Davey Tree Expert Company 

Connect with Doug Oster at www.dougoster.com. 

Have topics you'd like us to cover on the podcast? Email us at [email protected]. We want to hear from you!

Have feedback, questions or a topic you want covered? Click here to send Talking Trees a message OR email [email protected].

Chris Ellwood, district manager from Davey’s West Columbus office, talks about knowing when to break up with your tree and the importance of having a certified arborist check your property.  

In this episode we cover:  

• How to know when it’s time to break up with your tree (0:48) 
• Catalpa trees (4:29)
• Doug’s experience with breaking up with trees and having a certified arborist catch issues (6:26)
• The importance of having a certified arborist check your trees (9:28)
• Chris’ emotions when telling clients they have to remove a tree (13:15)
• Tree species that Chris has to commonly remove (16:22)
• The issues with pear trees (17:22)
• Chris’ advice on how and when to decide to take down a tree (19:08)

To find your local Davey office, check out our find a local office page to search by zip code.  

To learn more about when to remove a tree, read our blog, 6 Signs It Might Be Time To Remove Your Tree. 

To learn more about the importance of hiring a certified arborist, read our blog, Benefits of Hiring A Professional Certified Arborist. 

Connect with Davey Tree on social media:
Twitter: @DaveyTree
Facebook: @DaveyTree
Instagram: @daveytree
YouTube: The Davey Tree Expert Company
LinkedIn: The Davey Tree Expert Company 

Connect with Doug Oster at www.dougoster.com. 

Have topics you'd like us to cover on the podcast? Email us at [email protected]. We want to hear from you!    

Have feedback, questions or a topic you want covered? Click here to send Talking Trees a message OR email [email protected].

Rob Kraker from Davey's Southeast Nashville office shares tips on how to get your landscape ready for spring to set your trees up for a healthy growing season! 

In this episode we cover:  

• Tips to get trees ready for the growing season (0:31) (2:09) (9:10)
• Magnolias in Nashville (1:02)
• When does fertilization start? (2:50) 
• What happens when a tree blooms too early? (3:55)
• Deep root fertilization (4:49)
• Where is the tree's dripline? (6:43)
• Why fertilization is important (7:29)
• Pruning and tree growth (9:58)
• Japanese maples and tree growth (12:12)
• How Nick got into tree care and why he enjoys it (14:22)

To find your local Davey office, check out our find a local office page to search by zip code.  

To learn more about when you should start preparing your trees for spring, read our blog, Spring Tree Care Start... NOW?

To learn more about fertilizer, read our blog, Spring Tree Care: Tree Fertilizer to Replenish Nutrients or watch our video, Why Should I Fertilize My Tree?

To learn more about pruning, read our Trimming and Pruning section on our blog, Blog.Davey.com.

Connect with Davey Tree on social media:
Twitter: @DaveyTree
Facebook: @DaveyTree
Instagram: @daveytree
YouTube: The Davey Tree Expert Company
LinkedIn: The Davey Tree Expert Company 
 

Connect with Doug Oster at www.dougoster.com. 

Have topics you'd like us to cover on the podcast? Email us at [email protected]. We want to hear from you!    

Have feedback, questions or a topic you want covered? Click here to send Talking Trees a message OR email [email protected].

Chris Fields-Johnson, technical advisor at the Davey Institute, talks about the importance of healthy soil and his Davey career. 

In this episode we cover:  

• What is healthy soil? (0:50)  
• What the soil is like where Chris is (1:26) 
• The importance of PH when planting trees (2:30) 
• Acidic soil plants (4:40) 
• Can you and should you change your PH? (5:33) 
• The importance of a soil test (7:15) 
• Luxury consumption and over fertilization (9:00) 
• How to have more organic matter in your landscape (11:10) 
• What Chris does as a technical advisor at the Davey Insitute (15:25)  
• How Chris got started in the field (18:18) 
• Should you use compost for planting trees? (21:16)  

To find your local Davey office, check out our find a local office page to search by zip code.  

To learn more about healthy soil, read our blog, How to Keep Soil Healthy For Your Plants. 

To learn more about improving soil health, read our blog, How to Improve Soil Health with Biochar. 

To learn more about soil tests, read our blog, How to Perform a Soil Test (And Why You Need One!).  

Connect with Davey Tree on social media:
Twitter: @DaveyTree
Facebook: @DaveyTree
Instagram: @daveytree
YouTube: The Davey Tree Expert Company
LinkedIn: The Davey Tree Expert Company 
 

Connect with Doug Oster at www.dougoster.com. 

 
Have topics you'd like us to cover on the podcast? Email us at [email protected]. We want to hear from you!    

Have feedback, questions or a topic you want covered? Click here to send Talking Trees a message OR email [email protected].

Kevin Sproule from Davey's Edmonton, Alberta, office shares advice on how to protect your trees and plants from rock salt damage, as well as how to determine if your tree has experienced salt damage.

In this episode we cover:  

• How to keep plants safe from salt (0:45)
• Keeping salt away from the base of trees (1:41)
• Watering (2:38)
• Determining if a tree has salt damage (3:15)
• When to call an arborist (3:58)
• Fertilizing (4:28)
• Physical barriers (6:37)
• Tough winters (7:37)
• Trees that are more tolerant to salt damage (8:04)
• Trees that are more susceptible to salt damage (9:01)
• How Kevin started his career (9:27)
• Climate in Edmonton (10:33)
• Free consultations (12:56)
• How often will an arborist visit a property? (13:42)
• Relationship with clients (14:22) 

To find your local Davey office, check out our find a local office page to search by zip code.

To learn more about how to protect your trees from rock salt, read our blog, How to Protect Trees from Winter Salt or Rock Salt Damage.
To learn more about ways your property may be experiencing rock salt damage, read our blog, How Rock Salt May Be Affecting Your Lawn.
To learn more about salt tolerant trees, read our blog, Salt Tolerant Evergreen Trees (By Zone and Region).

Connect with Davey Tree on social media:
Twitter: @DaveyTree
Facebook: @DaveyTree
Instagram: @daveytree
YouTube: The Davey Tree Expert Company
LinkedIn: The Davey Tree Expert Company 
 

Connect with Doug Oster at www.dougoster.com. 

Have topics you'd like us to cover on the podcast? Email us at [email protected]. We want to hear from you! 

Have feedback, questions or a topic you want covered? Click here to send Talking Trees a message OR email [email protected].

Lou Meyer, business developer for Davey’s mid-Atlantic region, talks about the Mid-Atlantic Nursery Trade Show (MANTS), green industry trends and his favorite parts of his job.  

In this episode we cover:  

• What is MANTS? (1:05) 
• Green industry trends and home improvement (2:16) 
• Where Lou sources his trees from (3:14) 
• How Lou and Davey decide what trees to order (4:15) 
• Other green industry trends (7:06) 
• Native trees (8:00) 
• Smart irrigation and software trends at MANTS (9:00) 
• Lou on getting to know his clients (10:04) 
• The energy at MANTS (11:35) 
• New introduction trees (13:10) 
• The hardest parts of Lou’s job (15:35) 
• The fun parts of Lou’s job (17:20)   

To find your local Davey office, check out our find a local office page to search by zip code.

Connect with Davey Tree on social media:
Twitter: @DaveyTree
Facebook: @DaveyTree
Instagram: @daveytree
YouTube: The Davey Tree Expert Company
LinkedIn: The Davey Tree Expert Company 
 

Connect with Doug Oster at www.dougoster.com. 

 
Have topics you'd like us to cover on the podcast? Email us at [email protected]. We want to hear from you! 

Have feedback, questions or a topic you want covered? Click here to send Talking Trees a message OR email [email protected].

Josh Rongish, district manager from Davey’s Omaha, Nebraska, office, talks about protecting trees from winter weather, his favorite trees and his Davey career.  

In this episode we cover:  

• Safety in winter weather (0:40) 
• Should you knock ice/snow off your tree? (1:20) 
• What can you do for trees in low temperatures? (2:38) 
• What is wrapping bark and how to do it? (3:30) 
• Will trees recover from freeze damage? (4:25)  
• Watering your tree to protect during the cold (5:41) 
• Proper mulching for winter protection (6:55)  
• Changing hardiness zones and picking the right tree (10:10) 
• The importance of native trees (12:40) 
• Native trees that Josh loves (13:45) 
• How Josh got started with Davey (15:14)  
• The feeling of saving trees (16:56)  

To find your local Davey office, check out our find a local office page to search by zip code.  

To learn more about preparing trees for winter, read our blog, Seasonal Tree Care Checklist: How to Keep Trees Healthy This Winter. 

To learn more about tree wrapping, read our blog, Should I Wrap Trees for Winter Protection. 

To learn more about helping your trees survive the winter, read our blog, Five Steps to Help Trees Survive Winter with Little Damage.  

Connect with Davey Tree on social media:
Twitter: @DaveyTree
Facebook: @DaveyTree
Instagram: @daveytree
YouTube: The Davey Tree Expert Company
LinkedIn: The Davey Tree Expert Company 
 

Connect with Doug Oster at www.dougoster.com. 

 
Have topics you'd like us to cover on the podcast? Email us at [email protected]. We want to hear from you!    

Have feedback, questions or a topic you want covered? Click here to send Talking Trees a message OR email [email protected].

Eric Countryman from Davey's East Pittsburgh office shares some trees that can act as a windbreak for your properties and houses, and why they are beneficial. 

In this episode we cover:  

• Working outside (0:58)
• Why windbreaks are helpful (1:53)
• Choosing a tree based on zone (3:11)
• Holiday winter storm in 2022 (4:34)
• Green giant (6:03)
  • Deer resistance (6:46)
  • Availability (7:42)
  • Where to plant? (10:27)
• Colder climate windbreak trees (12:15)
• Warmer climate windbreak trees (13:29)
• Can you plant trees in January? (15:03)
• Pittsburgh season so far (16:02)
• Building relationships with clients (16:55)

To find your local Davey office, check out our find a local office page to search by zip code.  

To learn more about the best trees for blocking wind, read our blog, The Best Trees for Blocking Wind and Windbreak (By Zone). 

Connect with Davey Tree on social media:
Twitter: @DaveyTree
Facebook: @DaveyTree
Instagram: @daveytree
YouTube: The Davey Tree Expert Company
LinkedIn: The Davey Tree Expert Company 

Connect with Doug Oster at www.dougoster.com. 

Have topics you'd like us to cover on the podcast? Email us at [email protected]. We want to hear from you!    

Have feedback, questions or a topic you want covered? Click here to send Talking Trees a message OR email [email protected].