Vas Sladek

Sep 14

0

ISA certified arborist as landscape judge

By Vas Sladek | Arborist Insights, Education, Trees | No Comments

Proper tree planting is extremely important so when I got a chance to judge a tree planting and staking practical station, I jumped at it.

The landscape industry certified practical tests run twice a year, in June and October but there will be major changes from 2020. Stay tuned.

Planting and staking

Incredibly, I had to do this section three times. My ISA certified arborist status didn’t help me because I failed to follow the specifications. And while I can’t comment in detail on any of my seven candidates, I can say that a few of them didn’t follow the written specifications.

The second time I failed this station was because I totally forgot to put on a headset during stake pounding. Safety is also super important. If you fail to use the provided personal protection equipment, you will most likely get a few deductions.

My historic third attempt, finally done correctly, and giving me the prized Landscape Industry Certified technician status.

Planting depth

As a judge, I can’t give away the station’s secrets but let’s just say that planting the test specimen too deep is a major problem. And rightly so because landscape trees planted too deep suffer. They suffer because their roots can’t get enough oxygen. Then, when they decline and die we have to replace them which is costly. Let’s do it right the first time.

Mulch

This is another serious issue. My blog post from September 10, 2019, covered the mulch volcano epidemic. Luckily, my candidates have clear specifications to follow. The key is that there must be a few inches of soil clear between the tree trunk and the mulch. This eliminates any chance of mulch volcanoes.

And if you haven’t read my September 10, 2019 blog then go back and review the problems associated with tree mulch volcanoes.

Staking

Some newly planted trees must be stakes; and staked correctly. Once you follow the specifications, all you have to know is that the stakes shouldn’t stay on for more than one season.

Conclusion

Not all of the candidates I judged passed but I had a great time judging the tree planting and staking stations. I had a manual to follow and the other veteran judges helped me.

Incorrectly planted landscape trees suffer, decline and die. Then we lose their free ecosystem services at a time when more trees are required to fight Global Warming.

Sep 12

0

Easy to identify landscape trees

By Vas Sladek | Arborist Insights | No Comments

There are many beautiful trees in our West Coast landscapes and some are really easy to identify. I thought it might be fun to compile a list of landscape trees that you can easily identify. Perhaps it will inspire you to learn more about them and go on to learn about harder to identify trees.

Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)

This is our West Coast native and it’s easy to identify because its large bracts protrude from its cones. When you see these bracts you know it’s a Doug.

Bonus: read my blog post about a 1,000-year-old Douglas fir discovered on Vancouver Island. Read the book. It’s excellent! Let’s protect the last remaining stands of old growth in BC.

Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus)

The specific epithet “betulus” is a hint; the leaves look birch-like. What makes this tree awesome is the seed partially covered by bracts. You can’t miss Carpinus betulus when you see the bracts. These trees look great on boulevards.

Littleleaf linden (Tilia cordata)

Can you guess what the specific epithet “cordata” means? It means heart-shaped leaves. And again we get an awesome bract with several drupes protruding from it. When you see this set-up, heart-shaped leaf, bract and drupes, it’s Tilia cordata.

I recently observed mites on the leaves of Tilia cordata. You can prune off the affected branches but overall the tree should be fine. It’s just a freaky look.

Ghost tree (Davidia involucrata)

I shot this picture at a daycare looking up into the tree the way the kids do. I wonder if they’re afraid of the ghosts in the trees? I think the landscape architect had some fun with the design of this daycare.

The specific epithet “involucrata” hints at involucre, a grouping of bracts that partially covers a seed. This is easily in the top 5 of my most loved trees. I still can’t believe this tree exists. I love it.

If you see a smaller tree full of ghosts, you know it’s Davidia involucrata. You get bonus points if you remember what involucre refers to.

Cornelian cherry (Cornus mas)

Cornus is the dogwood family. Cornus mas provides multi-season interest with flowers and then edible cherries. I’ve seen people collecting the cherries in public parks and rushing off to make jam at home. I’ve never tried it.

When the cherries start dropping some people start panicking, asking for pruning and tree replacements like lunatics. This plant can a shrub or a small tree. When you see a shrubby tree with red cherries you know it’s Cornus mas.

There you are, five easy to identify landscape trees for you to enjoy. Practice their names and see if you can identify them in your local landscapes.

Sep 10

0

Get noticed and get ahead at work

By Vas Sladek | Company News | No Comments

Sep 10

0

Mulch volcanoes are here to stay

By Vas Sladek | landscape maintenance | No Comments

This isn’t my first blog post about mulch volcanoes and I’m returning to this topic only because of a picture I saw on Facebook. One lawn care group member shared the picture below and people had a good laugh. I felt like crying.

What’s wrong here?

It will definitely prevent weeds from growing and it looks pretty, doesn’t it? It’s a massive volcano; and reddish, too. But it’s completely twisted. I know the workers weren’t professionals. Professionals would never allow this kind of work to pass inspection.

Here is what mulched tree wells should look like: imagine a donut. No mulch touches the root flare, then it extends out in the middle and tapers towards the lawn edge.

This Acer platanus has a berm around it because that’s what specifications demanded. The mulch doesn’t touch the tree trunk. Why is this so critical? To answer this, I’m borrowing heavily from the work of my mentor Dr. Linda Chalker-Scott.

The above trunk tissues aren’t supposed to be covered by mulch because it creates dark, damp and low-oxygen conditions. The wetness can lead to rot and disease entry. See below how wet the section above the root flare is. This is asking for trouble. Opportunistic pests love this.

Another problem related to mulch volcanoes is root girdling. When you cover trunk tissue with mulch, the tree can push out adventitious roots which develop from the stem. As they grow and thicken, they can girdle the tree, essentially choking itself to death.

This is a great example showing adventitious root development inside a mulch volcano.

Mulch volcanoes aren’t going away. They’re like antibiotic resistant bugs. We need constant vigilance and good worker training. Otherwise, our landscape trees will suffer at a time when more and more trees are needed to combat Global Warming.

So, remember, apply tree mulch as if you were making a donut. Don’t build tree mulch volcanoes or I will erupt again on the pages of this blog.

Sep 01

0

Blower beast: get to know Stihl’s 800 Magnum

By Vas Sladek | machines | No Comments

Coincidence can bring lots of fun and excitement into your life. A few months ago I got to test the new and beautiful Stihl Magnum blower. And on that same day, I purchased a copy of The Atlantic magazine with a story by James Fallows about a successful blower ban in Washington, D.C. See “Get off my lawn“, The Atlantic, April, 2019. I had no idea landscapers could have so much fun in one day.

The key information

(Disclaimer: I am in no way associated with Stihl).

The new Stihl Magnum is beautiful. And here’s the key selling point. Stihl’s previous models had great air speed with low volume; and then they increased air volume but air speed suffered. Now, the two volumes meet successfully in the Magnum.

This is why your leaf blowing season is about to get better. The Magnum has good air volume AND air speed. It’s a fantastic blower that will make you fall in love with blowing. Unless you’re a writer from Washington, DC.

Key features

1. innovative 2-stroke, stratified charge engine, providing outstanding performance, plenty of power, a 20% reduction in fuel consumption and up to 70% fewer exhaust emissions

2. automatic starting position and automatic choke reset, very simple to start

3. professional anti-vibration system, making them very comfortable to use, reliable and user-friendly.

Vas tested

The features from above are all sales copy from Stihl’s website. I prefer to do my own testing in the field so this blog isn’t full of fiction. My field testing went really well. I believe this is the best blower I’ve ever used. Why?

It has tons of power so it can move large amounts of debris
It feels great on my shoulders
It doesn’t feel heavier than the previous models
It really starts nicely
And I don’t notice any extra noise

If you have larger properties to maintain or sites that get very leafy, this would be a great blower to invest in. I think the new Magnum will make you fall in love with blowing again.

My favourite local dealer is Tri-City Power Equipment, 98 Fawcett Road, Coquitlam BC V3K 6V5, 604-520-3000

Aug 31

0

Vas learns from his river rock mistake

By Vas Sladek | Mulch | No Comments

River rock is a great mulch material. I prefer soft mulches but river rock has its charms.

Last year I had a fairly easy task: remove a struggling skinny patch of lawn soaked in dog urine and install 2-6″ river rock. Sounds easy, right? I just went a bit far in my preparation work by removing too much soil. Then the bed ate up a lot of river rock and I went over budget. Both on time and material.

Of course, the one upside of using lots of river rock as mulch is that the bed is weed-free. Twelve months later I can laugh about it but I also learned from it.

12 months later

This year my boss was more careful. He sent me to the same site with just one yard of river rock. Incidentally, one yard of river rock will cost you roughly $60, tax included. Delivery and labour are extra. Having Red Seal Vas install your river rock will cost you lots of coins.

Step 1

Step one involves weeding and removing a little bit of soil so the rock can be nicely anchored. It wouldn’t make sense to install river rock over weeds.

Step 2

In step two we install the river rock. Spread it out nicely so you get good coverage.

Step 3

If you have a garden hose close by, wash off the sandy river rock so the colours show up. Unfortunately, there weren’t any water outlets nearby and I had to go work on another project.

All done. We just have to hose off the rocks to reveal their colours.

River rock makes perfect sense here because cars access garages every day and they can run over the rocks. It’s harder with plants which get flattened; and bare soil just grows weeds.

Weeds and compacted soil.

This is a maintenance nightmare. Bare soil just fills up with weeds and plants would just get run over by cars. Installing river rock is a perfect solution here.

I had to cover eight rectangles like the ones above with river rock and one yard was just right because I learned from my mistakes. Mistakes will happen from time to time. Learn from them and move on.

Aug 25

0

This is how Red Seal Vas rocks bedwork

By Vas Sladek | gardening, Strata Maintenance, weeds | No Comments

Great bedwork gives your garden and landscape a beautiful edge but it’s not a popular task. So let me show you how it’s done properly.

Struggle

Busy with pruning, I could only observe a new employee performing finesse work with her hands and a rake. Since she wasn’t given any time parameters it took her a long while to complete a small bed area. She raked and hand picked weeds as best as she could. Then she finally moved on, leaving a nearby weedy tree well untouched.

And I don’t blame her. She wasn’t set up to win. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Bedwork is simple. You just need to bring a good attitude to it. Let’s get sweaty.

No more struggles

Unless you’re hand picking huge trophy weeds, stop using your fingers for weeding. Professionals use tools and they stay on their feet. Sit down to enjoy your break, not to weed.

(Warning: if your company insists on hand weeding, use a small hand tool to save your fingers from abuse. )

Cultivate

Use a cultivator to uproot the weeds and fluff-up the soil. Concentrate on edges because that’s where weed seeds get blown; and where people miss them.

Run your cultivator along the edge and uproot all of the weeds. Don’t hand pick tiny weeds.

The cultivator uproots the weeds and then we rake them up. Hand-picking many tiny weeds is time consuming and it’s unlikely you’ll pick the entire weed. This is why weedy hand-picked beds quickly return to weedy mess.

I also find that my fingers hurt after hours of slow weeding by hand. Don’t do it, unless you’re picking big trophy weeds.

Rake up

Next, gently rake up the mess you just made and be careful not to remove too much soil. If you do remove some soil-and you will!-remember the time you just saved. Your hand-picking colleagues are probably still hand-picking tiny weeds somewhere.

Place your debris into a tarp.

Remember to always keep your debris piles in bed edges, not outside on pavement or lawn. This eliminates unnecessary blowing later on.

Note that the debris pile is raked to the edge, not on the stones.

Final step

The real final step is a clean-up blow but that’s done at the end of the day. Before you move on, rake any soil away from the edges.

Note that I raked soil away from the bed edge to keep it sharp looking.

Bonus effect

One huge bonus is that cultivation leaves your beds fluffy and fresh looking. Hand-weeded beds still look tired afterwards. Shame. So what if it costs you a bit of sweat. Your beds will look great longer.

Bedwork is a critical component of landscape maintenance and yet it’s often labelled as “bitch work”. This is wrong. Follow my steps outlined in this blog post and you’ll be a gold star in no time.

Aug 15

0

On relaxed campsite landscaping

By Vas Sladek | Landscaping, Plants | No Comments

I recently took my kids to Adams lake north of Chase, British Columbia. There they got to swim, ride in a motorboat and stay in a camper for the first time. And Daddy got a few days of rest which is critical for landscape professionals.

Adams lake, British Columbia.

At the lake front is a collection of campers parked on leased lots. This makes everything safer and more fun. One feature of the community that delighted the kid’s mother was a nearby community washroom and shower building.

Of course, I didn’t stress about my kids showering because they swam in the clear lake every day. I also believe in not scrubbing away protective skin oils daily, unlike my wife, who is an expert on bacterial soaps.

All this leads us to the building mentioned above and its landscaping.

What do you notice about the landscaping?

This bed is as relaxed as the setting. Just shooting the picture wasn’t relaxing because this was the women’s side and I didn’t want to arouse suspicion by taking too many pictures.

The plants look natural. They aren’t sheared into tight shapes they way their cousins are on strata title properties. It’s refreshing to see plants left to grow.

Also note that nobody is stressing about weeding. There are all sorts of wild grasses and weeds in this bed and nobody cares. It fits nicely into its natural setting.

The dwarf spruce and native Pacific ninebark (Physocarpus opulifolius) give us height; and there are small Hostas enjoying shade created by Euonymus alatus.

Euonymus alatus

Alchemilla

Hosta

Native Pacific ninebark

It was nice to spend Canada Day weekend with family at a lake and provide my kids with new experiences. But I also enjoyed seeing the relaxed landscaping which perfectly matched the relaxed setting. The plants were allowed to grow and look natural. It was nice to see.

Aug 10

0

How ISA certified arborists make extra cash

By Vas Sladek | Arborist Insights, Education | No Comments

I’ve always argued that all landscape professionals should be ISA certified arborists. It allows them to stay busy in winter with tree pruning and it also introduces more variety to their work days. They can also charge arborist rates which are higher than landscape rates.

And the best part? Extra income. Allow me to illustrate with one of my recent experiences. After reading this blog post, you might be tempted to get ISA certified. If that’s the case, contact me and I’ll help you prepare.

Tree babysitter

A friend referred me to a tank removal company. It turns out that municipalities require ISA certified arborists to be on site during excavations where trees are present. In this case there was only one tree which could potentially suffer damage, a giant Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii).

With DBH at 24 inches, the critical root zone extends 3.6 m away from the trunk. In this case, 3.6 m reached to the edge of a cement car port. The tank was buried under the car port but the mini-excavator worked on the lawn side, at drip-line.

Excavation Amigo

It was almost surreal getting paid to watch two young Mexicans jackhammer cement. The excavator did the rest. After a few hours the young dudes wondered what I was doing there, standing with a hard hat on, watching. Once I explained I was there to make sure nothing happened to the tree behind them, they wanted my job. Of course they did. It was a good gig with a good mission.

Other than watching the excavation, I also had to pick up the city permits in person and write two letters. The first letter lets the city know that a great ISA certified arborist will be on site to monitor the tree; and the final report shows that, in my professional opinion, there was zero impact on the tree.

The tank awaiting excavation. No structural roots were encountered at dripline.

Let’s recap: The critical root zone (3.6m from the trunk based on DBH of 24″) was never touched by the workers or machines. Remember, soil compaction silently kills trees; the first pass with an excavator does the most damage. This was news to the company owner.

When you compact a tree’s critical root zone you make it hard for fine surficial roots to collect water and nutrients. It might take several years for the tree to start declining.

Since all of the excavation took place at the edge of the dripline there was no damage. The tree obviously did well with the cement car port in place for many years. Any compaction would be on the lawn beyond the dripline.

I was extremely happy with my first tree babysitting gig. It was a good experience, both professionally and financially. And I’m confident the Douglas fir will easily outlive me.

Get ISA certified and reap the benefits!!

Aug 08

0

How to have fun with the X-Mark 30 walk behind mower

By Vas Sladek | Lawn Care, machines | No Comments

How do you cut a flat strata site with several long open lawn sections and some tighter spots? You use X-Mark’s 30 walk behind mower. Standard 21′ mower would be fine but it would require extra passes; and a big ride-on mower can’t access many of the tight spots.

I don’t often get to use the X-Mark 30 walk behind because, as a landscape supervisor, I usually move around different crews; and we often leave mowing to the newer workers.

But once in a while people go missing, especially during the summer months. There are weddings to attend and camp sites to populate. Then I get to help out and everything starts with lawn care.

Why X-Mark 30?

Obviously, the larger deck means you have to make fewer passes which reduces user fatigue. As a landscape professional I’m used to fatigue but new guys get spooked by their own sweat. Fewer passes is a dream for them. It was so much fun cutting long straight stretches of lawn, it inspired this blog post.
Because the mower is bigger, it takes some getting used to. It’s self-propelled and feels like a tank. It will crush any garden gnome that gets in the way.
One drawback is that you will need help to load this beast on and off your truck, unless you have a ramp.
The gas tank is huge so you can cover a huge area before re-fuelling.
One cool feature is that the front wheels get adjusted separately: just lift the pin and the wheel pops out so you can insert it into whatever height you desire, quickly.

Making fewer passes on long straight lawns is a bonus.

X-mark tech notes

You can read X-Mark’s notes on their website if you like. All I want you to know from this blog post is that the X-Mark 30 walk behind is surprisingly fun to use. If you have long straight stretches of lawn definitely try this beast.