Branching Out - Spring 2020 BranchingOut_spring2020

Working at Height continued.
Working safely at height is a lot like painting a picture. You first need
to acquire the proper equipment and supplies - think bucket trucks
or ladders for arboriculture and pastels or oils for art. You then need
to choose the style you’ll be working within. For pruning, this could
be a structural versus a very fine pruning specification; for painting
EARLY SPRING 2020
WHAT WE DO
modernism. Finally you need to execute the work flawlessly, keeping
Tree protection Working at Height
Tree preservation Promoting a culture of safety
Informed pruning
this could be the difference between dabbling in impressionism or
in mind carelessness with the handsaw or the paintbrush could ruin
the whole work, and in the case of tree care could result in property
damage or personal injury.
by John Hathaway, HMI Arborist
Critical thinking means that we must stay focused in order to be
The arborists at HMI have a wide skill set, a deep knowledge base, and decades of professional experi- safe on a daily basis. We make a hazardous job manageable at HMI
ence. We draw upon these attributes daily to do our jobs well, and more importantly, safely. Once you, by making decisions based on sound observations and employing
Landscape Design the client, decide to have work done on your landscape, our arborists must execute the job. Although proven techniques. The highest quality work , brought to you in
Landscape Construction we are a full service arboricultural company, most of our work centers around pruning. Pruning mature a safe, efficient manner, is our primary goal. Every day we work at
trees is practically synonymous with working at height, meaning that someone could get hurt if an great heights….but rest assured we have spent hundreds of hours
unrestrained fall were to occur. We work overhead quite often, using bucket trucks, climbing equipment, preparing to prune your trees!
Specimen tree planting
Plant Health Care
Soil Care
h
TCIA Accredited Tree Care Co.
Family Owned
Massachusetts Certified Arborists
(MCA)
ISA Certified Arborists (ISA)
Certified Tree Safety Professionals
(CTSP)
Tree Risk Hazard Assessment
Certified Arborist (TRAC)
and ladders to get ourselves to the task. Exposing clients to the way we approach working at height, and
the decision making process that accompanies this hazardous undertaking, can help illuminate why our
Before we are start any job we complete
“It takes just one mistake
when aloft for something
to go wrong. That is why we
have such a stringent safety
culture.”
a written hazard assessment and review
it with the entire crew in order to make
everyone think about how exactly we
will successfully avoid potential perils of
the day. Once the hazard assessment is
complete the work is divided according
to the particular skill sets and/or interests
of the crew. No matter what height we
h
are working at, we approach the situation
with a meticulous combination of positive
safety habits and a focused dedication to
@Harrison_McPhee_Inc
double checking our order of operations.
#NextGenArborist
harrison mcphee, inc.
[BOOK REVIEW]
safety protocols are so important.
Working at Height continued on next page.
The Overstory
A must-read for anyone fascinated by the mystery of trees
By Dianne Barth, retired librarian and Scott McPhee’s mother-in-law!
One chilly afternoon last winter found me staring The Overstory drew me in immediately. First, the
down at a book on the bottom shelf in my local indie fascinating, diverse cast of nine, main human
bookstore in Bridgton, Maine. The cover was facing characters are each introduced in their own chapter.
out and was emblazoned with a seal announcing it Their lives cleverly intertwine later on as the lives of
as a “Winner of the Pulitzer Prize.” Better than that, it the trees become the real story. According to Pow-
sported a full Albert Bierstadt painting of an ancient ers, “the complex social organization” of the forest is
redwood forest. I knew just the person to buy this for something few of us humans can begin to under-
- and I could “gently” read it in plenty of time before stand. Do we know that we are “cashing in a billion
wrapping it up as a birthday gift for him in December! years of planetary savings bonds and blowing it on
assorted bling” as we rush to mow down our old
Before I could reach the register, a woman burst growth forests? Is the earth itself here simply for the
through the door looking for the very same title. “care and feeding of one species?” The Overstory
Evidently, EVERYONE was reading The Overstory, by tries to answer these questions and encourages the
Richard Powers, and I was clutching the last available reader to consider doing the same.
copy. Several recently ordered, but already promised, copies stared By letting the trees speak for themselves we are helped to consider “a
down from a shelf above the register. Justin, the bookstore owner moral authority beyond the human.” And the reader is better for it.
assured his excited patron that he could have a copy for her by Friday.
That was fine with her. She would be back. I love small town book- I highly recommend this epic tale. It will change you. You will be able
stores. I took my copy home and started to read. to give a tree a knowing smile, and recognize it when it smiles back.