Arboculturalist

Another specialist essential to landscape designers are arboculturalists or arborists or in laymen's terms, tree surgeons. Arboriculture is the science of managing and maintaining ornamental or shade trees which would include shrubs and vines. An arboculturalist is a specialized branch of ornamental horticulture focusing only in trees used in landscaping projects. Arboculturalists are responsible for looking after the health of the trees. Not to be mistaken for a lumberjack and a forester, although both of them deal with trees, arboculturalists are more focused on a tree's condition. Forester study trees on a more scientific level while lumberjacks are mainly wood cutters. More or less, the difference of these three is how they treat trees. To be called an arboculturalist means obtaining a certified license. Different countries have different ways of giving the title of aborculturalist. In the United States, an aborculturalist aspirant have to pass a comprehensive written test given by the International Society of Arboriculture and must have at least three years experience.

Being an arboriculturalist may require additional trainings like being a Certified Line Clearance so that when trees are near electrical wires permissions need not be necessary. Another possible training needed, especially for those dealing with really large trees, are operation of cranes and other machines that may lift, transport and those that may be used trimming purposes. Having additional skills are always an advantage.

For not so big landscape projects, usually, ornamental holticulturists would suffice but for projects that involve a lot of trees like parks, theme parks or village masterplans, arboriculturalists are the go-to guys. The Yellowstone Park maintains an arboculturalist or possibly a team of arboculturalists as trees generally define the landscape as they are essential to its famous inhabitants – the bears.

Arboculturalist, generally have a wide scope of work in relation to trees but it should be noted that, still, aesthetics is still their forte with regards to the general landscape. In fact, as far as pruning and trimming is concerned, bonsai, the famous miniature trees, falls also under their jurisdiction. Arboriculture and ornamental horticulture do sometimes overlap in functions but in regards to bonsai, an arboriculturalist should have the upper hand as basically it is tree maintenance rather than mere aesthetics.

Application of right chemicals to for controlling insect infestation and diseases brought about by pests should also be in the armory of an arboriculturalists' knowledge. Different techniques of application like spraying, soil application and stem injections require.

Other duties of an arboriculture may also include assessment of the safety of trees to its proximity to human pathways or community. They have the power to determine if indeed a tree may cause danger to humans.

Landscape designers employ arboculturalists as their knowledge in trees both in aesthetic purposes and maintenance are essential in a project. There have been some instances when trees where transplanted on a landscape without consulting tree experts but then after a few months the trees died and the intended appeal of the landscape also vanished with it. However, nowadays, masterplanning are incorporating arboriculturalist's inputs so incidents of dying trees so soon won't happen again.

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