The number of research proposals submitted to the Tree Research and Education Endowment (TREE) Fund each year far outstrips the funds available to implement them. For example, research grant requests over the past year totaled more than $815,000 and the TREE Fund was only able to support about 18 percent of that. Business and academic researchers are not at a loss for problems to solve or questions that need an answer. The voices of the industry that communicate these needs to researchers are definitely being heard.
“Research grant requests over the past year totaled more than $815,000 and the Tree Research and Education Endowment (TREE) Fund was only able to support about 18% of that.”
The genus Ilex, holly, plays a significant role in the beliefs and traditions of the winter season. To the Romans, hollies were the trees of the god Saturn and wreaths of holly were gifts during his holiday, Saturnalia. In Celtic legends, evergreen hollies with their beautiful red berries, announced the ascension of the Holly King who ruled the forest with his green leaves in summer. For Christians, the pointed leaves of the holly are associated with the crown of thorns worn by Jesus and the bright red holly berries symbolize drops of his blood.
For arborists and plant health care technicians, hollies are among the most important landscape plants and they require special attention due to the presence of a few egregious scale insect plants.
Soft scales injure hollies in two ways. First, by removing the vital products of photosynthesis, soft scales rob hollies of nutrients. In heavy infestations, leaves become chlorotic and sometimes drop prematurely. Chronic infestations can result in dieback of branches. Second, to obtain adequate nutrients for development and reproduction, these scales imbibe large volumes of sap. Processed sap is excreted in the form of a sugar-laden liquid called honeydew.
As honeydew accumulates on leaves beneath the scale, a black fungus called sooty mold colonizes the sticky liquid and uses the sugars as a substrate for growth. Sooty mold does not harm the holly directly, that is, it is not pathogenic. However, sooty mold’s grimy appearance is disagreeable and one can imagine that enough sooty mold might cut down on the plant’s ability to gather energy from sunlight. Fortunately, once the scales are controlled, sooty mold is easily removed with a vigorous plant wash.
Managing soft scales on holly
As with all pest and abiotic problems, early detection is the key to effective management. During the regular inspection of hollies, make note of discolored leaves or branches with dieback. Carefully inspect the lower surface of leaves for signs of soft scale nymphs or white waxy ovisacs. The presence of honeydew and ants, wasps and bees that forage on honeydew are good indicators of soft scale infestations. Accumulating sooty mold is another dead giveaway of the presence of these pests.
by Michael J. Raupp, Tree Care Industry Magazine, Vol. XXLL, Number 1-January 2011
I found an excellent resource by the UF IFAS Extension Office! It is a detailed PDF entitled: Assessing Damage and Restoring Trees after a Hurricane. Urban Forest Hurricane Recovery Program. The link for this resource is below. It covers the following topics:
Safety - staying safe and hiring the right professional
Assessing damage - learn to tell the difference between trees that should be removed and those that may recover
Restoration pruning - find out how to prune trees to restore them back to health after a hurricane
Palms & pines - get specialized information for dealing with palms and pines
Prevention - learn how to design and manage urban forests for wind resistance by selecting the right tree and designing the right location
Wind resistant species - find out which tree species can survive hurricanes better
*All information was provided by the UF IFAS extension office
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/EP/EP29100.pdf
Navarre, FL — July 12, 2010 — Trees Plus, one of northwest Florida's oldest and most respected full service tree care and landscaping companies, today announced owner, Rob Williamson was named as a finalist in the ISA's True Professionals of Arboriculture award, for the second consecutive year. Mr. Williamson was one of twenty-one finalists out of more than 20,000 ISA certified arboricultural professionals from around the United States. Mr. Williamson was also named The State of Florida's 2009 "Outstanding Professional" by the Florida Urban Forestry Council earlier this year.
"It was a very difficult process to choose our finalists from so many outstanding nominees. Rob really stood out by his commitment to client service and his extensive community involvement. We hope he gets nominated again in 2011," said Sonia Garth, ISA Public Relations Manager. The award finalists are judged on their interaction with customers, leadership of employees and their communications.
It is common for nominees to come from the northeast United States and areas with high emphasis on nature and national parks, where local citizens and government are acutely aware of the need for knowledgeable Arborists. Commercial, municipal, military and residential property owners and managers in Northwest Florida can now benefit from having a nationally recognized, highly trained tree care specialist available in their own backyard.
Rob Williamson is an ISA Certified Arborist and his professional affiliations include the ISA, TCIA (The only TCIA member in Northwest Florida), Florida Urban Forestry Council, Nursery Growers and Landscape Association and the Society of Municipal Arborists.Prior to acquiring Trees Plus, Rob enjoyed success in the golf industry as a General Manger for Walt Disney World Golf, American Golf and Meadowbrook Golf properties. Under his management, each property experienced unprecedented growth in revenue and membership.
"To be recognized by the ISA again as a finalist for the True Professionals award, lets me know we are headed in the right direction as a business. Having said that, of course I want to win it! I will continue to raise awareness for tree related issues and increase our presence in the community I call home."
More information about Trees Plus or to read Rob's blog can be found at www.TreesPlusOnline.com. Contact Trees Plus via email at info@TreesPlusOnline.com, or by calling (850) 939-9979. Information about the ISA award program and the certification program is found on the International Society of Arboriculture website at www.ISA-Arbor.com.
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About Trees Plus
Serving Okaloosa, Walton, Escambia and Santa Rosa counties since 1992. Trees Plus is a full service tree care and landscaping provider. Services include hurricane preparation, tree preservation, consulting services, expert witness, construction site planning, tree appraisal services, tree pruning, tree installations, emergency tree care, tree removal, and stump and debris removal.
About the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA)
The ISA, headquartered in Champaign, Ill., is a nonprofit organization supporting tree care research and education around the world. As part of ISA's dedication to the care and preservation of shade and ornamental trees, it offers the only internationally-recognized certification program in the industry. For more information, contact a local ISA Certified Arborist or visit www.isa-arbor.com.
Saturday, June 26, in Conjunction with Ham Radio Field Day
Navarre, FL – Listen to live music, build yourself a hot dog, and get information from area business and organizations about being prepared for (and recovering from) disasters, all while having a pleasant afternoon at Navarre Park. On Saturday, June 26, from noon until 5:00pm, the Navarre Community Emergency Response Team will hold a Disaster Preparedness Fair. In addition to providing information and entertainment to the community, this event is a fundraiser for Navarre CERT.
Sponsored by Trees Plus, the event will feature booths with area businesses and organizations that provide products or services related to disaster preparedness, response, recovery and mitigation.
Starting at 1:00pm, the Navarre CERT Amateur Radio Club will be participating in the annual Amateur Radio Relay League Field Day, where hams demonstrate the emergency communications capabilities that are the foundation of amateur radio, by operating on noncommercial power and contacting other hams all over the US and beyond. Anyone (including you!) can sit in and make radio contacts under the guidance of a licensed ham.
Don’t forget that Navarre Park also features a children’s playground and splash pad, as well as the Butterfly House. The Navarre CERT information booth has children’s disaster preparedness materials such as activity books, comic strips and puzzles, including a popular word search. So bring the kids along!
You may have seen members of Navarre CERT assisting the Sheriff’s Office and community organizations in non-disaster situations. But the team’s real mission is to teach disaster preparedness, assist emergency services agencies in responding to disasters, and helping in the recovery from disasters. CERT is a volunteer organization under the Citizen Corps program of the Dept of Homeland Security. Navarre CERT is a non-profit corporation and needs the financial support of the community in order to serve Navarre and other areas of Santa Rosa and surrounding counties.
A Santa Rosa County businessman is being honored today for being the top in his field.
Rob Williamson, owner of Trees Plus in Navarre, is the Florida Urban Forestry Council's 2009 Outstanding Professional. Williamson will receive the award at an urban forest seminar today at the Pensacola Civic Center.
"It really validates what we, the team members of Trees Plus, are doing," said Williamson, 41. "A lot of work went into it. It's very rewarding."
Charlie Marcus, the state Division of Forestry's representative to the council, serves on the group's awards selection committee. He praised Williamson's efforts to promote urban forestry.
"He has done volunteer tree and landscape work for a number of public entities," Marcus said. "He has conducted educational programs for local communities. He serves on a local tree board (in Fort Walton Beach). He sponsors an awards program for residential properties that expeditiously use trees to enhance energy conservation, use primarily native trees, and adhere to the concept of 'right tree/right place.' "
Williamson believes giving back to the community is an important part of his business.
"The team members at Trees Plus donate a lot of time to preserving parks, natural areas, historic cemeteries and historic trees," he said. "I go into school and speak about preserving trees."
Trees Plus has helped at Bagdad Cemetery and the Old Mill Site Park in Bagdad, and restored two historic trees at the Chamber of Commerce of Greater Fort Walton Beach. Williamson is the chairman for the Emerald Coast Science Center in Fort Walton Beach and hopes to work with Escambia County urban forester Jimmie Jarratt to help plant trees in urban areas this year.
Trees Plus was established in 1992. Williams has owned it since March 2005. The business employs as many as 17 people at the height of the season, he said. It serves customers from Pensacola to Santa Rosa Beach in south Walton County.
"I'm one of the few certified arborists in the area. As a certified arborist, I am able to provide consultations for new construction," Williamson said. "We do tree planting and removal. We do tree pruning and stump grinding, anything to do with trees. We also have the landscaping side of the business."
Pensacola News Journal • Louis Cooper • lcooper@pnj.com • February 10, 2010
Click the link below to see a brief interview conducted with Rob Williamson of Trees Plus. This was featured in the International Society of Arboriculture's E-Newsletter: Planting Seeds - Fall 2009.
http://www.isa-arbor.com/members/Resources/Planting%20Seeds_Fall_2009.pdf
Each spring Florida homeowners are often alarmed by the appearance of blisters and wrinkles on the leaves of their valuable oak trees. These deformities are symptoms of a disease known as oak leaf blister, caused by the fungus Taphrina caerulescens. This disease is found throughout the United States and Europe.
In Florida it most commonly occurs on live oaks, water oaks, laurel oaks, and southern red oaks. On healthy trees the effect of oak leaf blister is usually negligible. Although severe cases of the disease can cause defoliation and loss of growth, it rarely if ever kills the host tree.
Prepared by Ernest C. Ash, Biologist, and Dr. Edward Barnard, Forest Pathologist, Florida Division of Forestry.
I was conducting a hurricane evaluation for a client recently and a question came up. How do I hurricane-proof my trees? Many clients have the same goal of tree preservation along with home protection. My first reaction was to commend the client for thinking proactively as opposed to reactively when it comes to their tree care. The truth is, most indigenous trees, if properly maintained, should perform without failure during a wind event. The key is eliminating pre-existing conditions which lead to tree failure.
Following Hurricane Ike that struck the Houston area in 2008, insurance carriers commissioned a study to analyze the claims they paid. One Houston company discovered that roughly 50% of all structural loses were caused by fallen trees and tree limbs. However, this insurer went one step further and hired an arborist to inspect the trees and determine why the failure had occurred. That high winds caused the tree failures was not the surprise, the surprise was 100% of the sampled trees exhibited pre-existing health and/or structural conditions which served as the catalyst to the tree’s failure. Of the sampled properties, there was not a single healthy tree which failed. As a result, many arborists, myself included, believe most tree losses can be avoided with proper identification and treatment of pre-existing symptoms and regularly scheduled maintenance.
So now that we know tree failures can be avoided, what are the steps to take to protect trees and structures? Tree conditions can be very difficult to diagnose. Although a hollow trunk can still support a full crown, the tree is still a hazard. This is when an arborist with experience in risk assessment is vital to proper diagnosis. Regularly scheduled maintenance by a tree care provider with an arborist on staff, not a landscaper or lawn service, can help you head into this and future hurricane seasons with confidence your trees and home will be protected.
The International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) provides a list of certified arborists in your area to aid in selecting a tree service. Take the appropriate steps to reduce or eliminate potential tree hazards prior to the next storm. Use an arborist to assist you in this risk assessment process and with all your tree service needs.
While visiting existing clients and meeting new ones, I have the distinct pleasure of traveling from one end of this picturesque landscape to the other. My time in the field lately is leaving little doubt about the impact of the current economic downturn on this area and its effect on our collective psyche. From Pensacola to Destin and back to Niceville and Pace, many of our once bustling storefronts now stand vacant. The countless “for sale” signs tell us we have a long way to go before noticeable economic improvement comes to the gulf coast. If you listen to any form of media, the relentless negativity is everywhere. Local or national tv news, radio, internet, newspaper you name it and the story is the same. If you internalize this constant onslaught of negativity, it can get you down if you let it. I choose not to participate in the recession or group think. Here is a thought…What if we viewed this time in our lives as an opportunity. An opportunity to become aware of our surroundings. A chance to spend more time with loved ones. An opportunity to grow, learn, improve, adapt, exercise, overcome, persevere, change direction, re-focus. Anyone can continue to point out the problem, it takes true leadership to propose a solution. If you find yourself in a hole, put down the shovel. Be aware and receptive to change and a new path will be revealed to you.
Green technology, eco-friendly, organic, carbon footprint and global warming are terms rapidly becoming part of the American psyche. The global importance was truly evident recently as Al Gore won a Nobel Prize for his efforts in the study of global warming. He has been a busy guy, what with inventing the internet, serving as VP, running for President of the United States and now discovering our rising global temperature. Where does he find the time?
Seriously though, Earth day is rapidly gaining notoriety in the U.S. and in our local area. The City of Ft. Walton Beach recently had 2,000 kids in attendance for their Earth Day celebration this year. This is an amazing success story and the local volunteers should be proud of the work done to raise awareness with the youth of the area. The first such celebration took place in 2005 and there were 500 in attendance so the growth is tremendous.
Northwest Florida is an ecological wonder and should be preserved and enhanced as our rapid growth continues. Please ensure you are doing what is necessary to conserve where possible, reduce your carbon footprint and educate yourself on the local ordinances and codes prior to starting your next landscape project. Oh, I almost forgot, Happy Earth Day everyone!