Davey Tree Flipbooks

6 | September/October 2014 S ince the beginning, Davey has been no stranger to the immense importance of arboriculture in cemeteries. Before he founded the company in 1880, John Davey realized trees' vast impacts to special places when he expertly transformed the landscape of Standing Rock Cemetery in Kent, Ohio, into a beautiful and flourishing place for loved ones to visit. The cemetery continues to impress visitors with its natural beauty to this day, more than 135 years later. Shortly after the turn of this century, Davey had the opportunity to apply its "special care for special places" values at a much larger scale. Without a certified arborist on staff, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs National Cemetery Administration (NCA) contacted Davey Resource Group for assistance with the trees standing in its national cemeteries in 2002. Tom Perkins, lead agronomist for the NCA, had recognized Davey's reputation for outstanding, high-quality work in arboriculture. "I'm honored the federal government selected Davey to help them manage these landscape trees," says Jenny Gulick, DRG senior consulting urban forester for the Department of Veterans Affairs. "Our national cemeteries are more than just a place with headstones and grass. They are historic spaces, and the trees really define the cemetery and make them even more special." Working closely with NCA's agronomists, DRG began an extensive inventory of national cemeteries. "Each cemetery is unique," explains Site Manager/Urban Forester Brad McBride. "It's the way the ground feels, perfectly lined headstones, perfectly lined trees." SPECIAL PLACES. Because of their historical value, national cemeteries receive frequent visitors. Maintaining their trees is important, not only for the safety of visitors but also for the integrity of the landscape. "On one hand, they are very beautiful cemeteries— the trees create that character," Gulick says. "On the other hand, national cemeteries have a lot of visitors, a lot of burials. Trees need to be beautiful but also safe and managed properly." Davey crewmembers enjoy working in such historical atmospheres. Because of DRG's involvement, many irreplaceable historic trees now receive proper care. "To know DRG is involved in these cemeteries is a good feeling," McBride says. "They're very honorable places to be." SPECIAL CARE. Davey's consistency earned DRG the sole responsibility for conducting tree inventories at national cemeteries. "This project is utterly unique," Gulick explains. "Only Davey can give the consistency they want on a national level. All the tree inven- tory information, mapping and management plans are consistent, yet customized for that climate and particular cemetery's needs." The same DRG arborists—Shawn Bruzda, Ken Christensen, Aren Flint, Reid Gibson, Jim Jenkins, Lori Murphy, Jon Schmidt, McBride and Gulick—conduct the tree inventories to further maintain uniformity and deliver a high level of service. All the national cemeteries then manage their tree inventory and map data in TreeKeeper ® . TreeKeeper provides each cemetery director with detailed information on the type and condition of each tree and any management recommendations DRG made for sustainment. Regional agronomists can review all their cemeteries' tree populations online in TreeKeeper to identify trends and create budgets for proactive tree care. While they primarily focus on turf and soils, NCA agronomists use DRG's inventories and management plans to take better care of their tree-filled landscapes. Upon the completion of a tree inventory, national cemetery agronomists calculate the benefits trees provide, determine budget funding needed for tree maintenance and keep cemetery grounds safe by maintaining all trees. The Trees Define the Cemetery Davey prescribes proper maintenance for the trees standing within national cemeteries across the U.S.

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