Has spring sprung?

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I find the older I get, the more opportunity I have to make the same jokes that I make every year. It feels like both a badge of honour and a recognition of the march of time.

We always planted the garden on May long when I was a kid. Chris and I tried once in Wpg. We had a bunch of stuff started, ready to go — and it snowed. Like super, wet cold snow. So our poor seedlings got all leggy and didn’t really do as well as they could.

Sometimes you need to dance with nature. The sunshine really seems like it’s here! A lot of folks have called me regarding fruit tree pruning, and I’m sorry to say that unless I do it in the next ten minutes, we will need to look at it for the fall.

If you want to talk pruning or puns, call Reta at 204-730-0368

Industry Trends

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Once a year or so, Vermeer Winnipeg puts on a day of continuing education for arborists. It’s usually brutally cold, really fun, and very informative (they also provide lunch!)

I (Reta) have not been able to come for the last few years – Vermeer skipped a year when they were changing locations, and I’ve been at home with the munchkin for the past two.

Chris and I are nerding out pretty hard discussing the differences between Double Rope Technique and the new hotness, Single/Static/Stationary Rope Technique. We rarely need an excuse to buy more gear, and they are some aspects that seem helpful. But I am always wary of a cure all. It is definitely something for the tool box.

We are both voracious readers, and are constantly looking for better or more efficient solutions to add to our literal and figurative tool boxes.

If you have a challenging tree, call Reta at 204-730-0368 and we can talk felling plan.

Renovations in the yard

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While we are cozy behind windows, and underneath blankets, is a great time to dream about how we want to change our yards next spring. It is an excellent time to assess the shape, growth, and some aspects of the health of trees – when they are naked without leaves!

We like to ask what people would like to use their yard for – relaxing respite from the modern world, for the kids to run around, to grow food – there are many ways to design the space around our homes. I suppose the fancy name for how we look at your yard is “holistically” meaning the parts are interconnected, and part of a bigger whole. An example of a question I would consider is how does one tree being pruned or removed affect the rest of the yard? Or how do you want to use the yard? We once did a large removal of five spruce trees – lovely – but planted very close to the house. The homeowner couldn’t walk outside because there was so much sap on her patio and the surrounding area. It was a tough decision, but one that the homeowner ultimately was delighted with. She re-landscaped and now has the backyard sanctuary that she wanted!

My seed order came today, which means that soon we will be out there, puting our dreams and plans into action!

If you would love to talk space and possibilities, or marvel at this late in the season snow dump, call Reta at 204-730-0368

Life happens

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Several times this summer, folks have told me how they should have taken care of this tree five years ago. Or they apologize for how overgrown something is. Basically, something is not the way they want it (tree, hedge etc) and it has been that way for a while. One lady told that she had lived in the house for seventeen years, and had been worried about the tree falling for that long.

Who knew I was in the good sleep biz?

There is an old Chinese saying “The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago. The second best time is right now.”

There are lots of things we “should” have done yesterday, last month, last year etc. But life happens. People get sick, or busy, or sidetracked, or focused on the kids, the job, the team.

If that tree is a worry – let’s talk about it. If those hedges mean you are losing sleep – let’s get on that. By all means, call Reta at 204-730-0368

Tight spaces and catching branches

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We recently had the opportunity to remove a spruce tree that was cuddling the power lines! After a quick hair cut from the MB Hydro crew, Chris and I got to work. 

It was actually a pretty hilarious situation. There was not enough room to use rigging. 

Oh you read that right. 

So close, I could nearly reach out and touch him


Solution?

I caught the branches. Out of the air. 

Look out, Cirque de Soleil (do you think they need a branch juggler?)

If you want to throw us a curveball, call Reta at 204-730-0368

Safety Stuff

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I am always looking at trees and buildings. I am in the tree business and I love architecture. So that is what I am checking out while I am out quoting, running errands, etc. Last week, on my way home for lunch, I passed two “job sites” and I was pretty steamed. The first was two men without hard hats, hearing protection, pylons/flags, who were chipping branches adjacent to a major thoroughfare. The vehicle was not identified in any way, so I am uncertain who it was. 

Chris and I came up in heavy construction and know that young workers are particularly vulnerable to injury or fatality as they are being trained for their position. This is a tragedy of our times, and as an employer, we believe it is critical to train young or new-to-tree business workers so that they can safely perform their jobs. People will say that there “isn’t time for safety” or “being safe takes too long and costs too much”

We disagree. We train our employees properly, and provide them with personal protective equipment. We are covered by contractor insurance, liability insurance, and Workers Compensation.

This means that Chris and I wear PPE.

This means that if you decide to book Bee EZ Tree Service, I will instruct you on how to engage our crew safely, where to stand out of the way if you would like to watch, encourage you to wear PPE if you are coming around your yard/our jobsite.

There is a cost obviously associated with buying lots of hard hats, gloves, safety glasses etc – but that is the cost of safely doing our business.

Excerpt from our training manual “Safety is an attitude, that infuses your movement and approach to a task. Safety needs to be an automatic response to the situations that we will find ourselves in every day. People look at our work and say, That’s dangerous! No. Our work involves risk, and through training, planning, talking, and executing the plan – we mitigate those risks.” (Saborowski 2017)

If you would like to read about the questions you can ask your arborist, check out this post 10 Questions to Ask Before Hiring an Arborist or Tree Service

If you would like to talk about the good old days, and how we can safely take care of your trees and hedges, call Reta at 204-730-0368

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