Sunday, May 17, 2015

By Tammie Caldwell


Arborists are also called arboriculturalists, although to a less extent. They are professionals in the arboriculture profession, which deals with the cultivation, study, and management of vines, shrubs, and trees on an individual basis. Their area of concern is normally limited to individual perennial woody plants in most cases. Forests are left to the field of forestry and silviculture. There are many certified arborists in Arlington VA that one can hire to do a professional work.

Foresters and loggers are some of the professionals whose scope of work is almost similar to that of arborists. The professions have minor differences. The field of arboriculture has several sub-divisions. Professionals specialize in different sub-divisions such as working near power lines, pruning and climbing, and treating and diagnosis. Specialization in more than one sub-division is common.

An arborist performs several tasks within a wide and complex scope of work. Some of the issues they handle include landscape ecosystems, ecological communities, and abiotic components. The community or the owner of a tree may need it to be treated, cared for, or monitored to conform to specific safety and health requirements. In general, the work they do may involve planting, transplanting, preparation and installation of support structures, and pruning.

Besides the aforementioned tasks, it is also the work of an arborist to prevent, diagnose, treat, and study parasitism and diseases. They also prevent or interrupt predation and grazing where applicable and install protection mechanisms against lightning. All forms of disease causing vegetation are removed when discovered in an ecosystem. They also prepare reports, offer consultation services, and give legal testimonies whenever required.

The place of work varies with some working in the offices while others in the fields. Field practitioners use ropes and harnesses to climb trees. Lifts and cranes may be used some cases to climb trees. Some practitioners decide to specialize in a few areas while others do everything pertaining to the field. Some enjoy the manual work involved while others prefer staying in the office.

There are many different routes through which one may go through to become certified as an arborist. As such, some practitioners become more qualified than others depending on the route followed. Even though many individuals like pursuing formal education, apprenticeship is also an alternative. Formal education differs from state to state and even from location to location within a country. Practitioners are required to attend continuous education to stay updated on new skills and techniques.

In USA, one is required to have completed three years of documented and verified experience to become a certified arborist. A written test from International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) must also be taken and passed. There is also college training which one may undertake to become certified.

Field practitioners sometimes decide to stop going into the field and work from offices as consultants to the general public. They may at times be required to go out to attend to legal matters involving neighbors. The range of issues they solve when they are consulted for legal purposes include public safety, heritage issues, nuisance problems, boundary issues, and obstruction of views.




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