Tree Training: Nation's Arborists Gather for Intense Program

Trees are living things vital to the health and survival of our planet, so it makes sense to rigorously train their caretakers. That’s a decision the Davey Tree Expert Company made more than 100 years ago, and their dedication to educating the stewards of our nation’s trees hasn’t wavered.

Every February, the Davey Institute of Tree Sciences (D.I.T.S.) holds a month-long intensive training program consisting of 11-hour days, six days a week. Student arborists, who have fulfilled certain criteria and are handpicked by their superiors, travel from around the U.S. and Canada to attend this prestigious course.

The extensive training focuses on the complete care of trees and includes classroom and onsite training in a wide variety of areas, including pruning, troubleshooting problems, preserving trees during construction, disease and insect management, safe climbing and cabling.

Courses are taught by top experts, including master arborists, entomologists, and plant pathologists. D.I.T.S. attendees have the option to take the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) exam after the training is complete.

This year there are 51 students in the course, and they are currently staying and studying at the Institute’s headquarters in Kent, Ohio.

All-consuming and immensely educational, D.I.T.S. is no easy course, as last year’s Golden Oak Award winner, Valerie Locker, discovered. She won the coveted award for being the student with the highest academic performance. A biologist and site manager for Davey Resource Group, the consulting division of The Davey Tree Expert Company, Locker reports going from apprehension about spending a month with a bunch of tree “guys” to receiving a lot of support during training and developing many friendships. “Never in my life have I felt such camaraderie and support,” she says.

Chad Gregg also attended the 2014 class. “Being chosen to attend D.I.T.S. is a badge of honor,” he says. Another student, Miles Peart, agreed. “The course is so good that I’d like to stay forever. I’ve learned more during these weeks than two years in arboriculture college.”

R.J. Laverne is manager of education and training at Davey and oversees D.I.T.S. He notes that Davey, which also partners with Kent State University in order to offer students a two-year associate’s degree program, is unusual in its commitment to training.

“Our goal is to help Davey arborists to be profitable and efficient and to provide superior service to clients while remaining safe,” says LaVerne, who notes the high caliber of students chosen to participate.

“The people who attend have great potential. They are the best and the brightest, and I suspect we’re looking into the faces of future CEOs and managers in the industry,” he says. “For those of us guiding the arborists through D.I.T.S., it’s a lot like planting a tree properly in the right location and giving it the necessary sunlight and nutrients. With D.I.T.S., we attempt to put the right people in the right place and give them what they need to flourish.”

Julie Bawden-Davis is a garden writer and master gardener, who since 1985 has written for publications such as Organic Gardening, Wildflower, Better Homes and Gardens and The Los Angeles Times. She is the author of seven books, including Reader’s Digest Flower Gardening, Fairy Gardening, The Strawberry Story, and Indoor Gardening the Organic Way, and is the founder of HealthyHouseplants.com.