Quote:
Originally Posted by quercus 
The stuff that makes you an arborist is the ability to perform high-end work on all trees, both big and small, and everything that is related to trees. I think it's better to know everything about something (trees) then to know something about everything (landscaping).
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Seems I've never been able to know everything about something, so it's safer to know something about everything. That's often why exams don't require 100% to pass.
What I've mentioned in addition, is that if tree climbers can't identifiy turfgrass (at least here where lawn is a big deal) and know other plant care, they become handicapped. Because climbing is not a knowledge that's essential to know what to do WITH tree. But turf care is. How can we recommend how people should alter or maintain their property in relation to the tree, if we don't know what it's in relation with?
No arborist really should be viewed as "climbing UP" a tree.
An arborist instead "steps INTO" a unified landscape environment when they walk onto a property.
That's why I provide 300% better service than the average climbing Certified Arborist in Oregon. I've got the knowledge and years of experience to match the Certified Arborists and climbers - that' 100%. I've got the landscape intall experience and turf management background - that's 100%. And I've got the college and landscape design background - that's 100%. So I can read the intended design of all the plants together as a unit on the property, and understand the underground and above ground nature of "The Whole".
So when a climber is handicapped by not having the extra understanding of what the tree is PART of, that's not High-End service. It becomes Lower-End service than what is "available".
I find it interesting that some climbers like talk and act as if the big tree was the landscaping, rather than unit of the landscaping.
When I contract pruning and peripheral landscape work for homeowners, they get more complete service. That's because if there are big trees, I hire from among the better climbers who are Certified Arborists to work on the project. That combines 3 Certifications on all those projects. Both of our Arborist Certifications and combined experience, plus the Landscape Technician Certification on top of it.
That supercharges the entire service and provides comprehensive care that most climbers in our area are not providing.
That's why I believe in "managing" landscaping and tree care. Other arborists could just as easily hire people who are experts on the rest of the stuff in the yard to fill that void in the overall care, or, they can just learn it and provide that comprehensive approach individually.
Personally, I easily accept climbing arborists as arborists even if they don't understand most of the rest of the landcape plant materieal and components.
But as long as a few felt like making a big deal out of the non-hort aspect as a qualifier, it seemed like an entertaining opportunity to toss the horticultural qualifier into the arena of ideas.
What's more important?
The non-hort aspect? Or the hort aspect?
Gear, climbing, rigging? Or comprehensive plant ID and cultural care knowledge?
But since I don't expect all climbing arborists to know everything, I'm just fine with calling them arborists. Only makes sense, since they usually know the core value of tree health basics.