Monthly Archives: October 2016

For the past three summers, UMass and Stockbridge have offered a “pre-college” course in Arboriculture & Urban Forestry for high school students. The course will run for one week (35 hours of training—in the classroom and in the field) in July 2017. Students learn the importance of safety, basic tree biology and soil science, how to identify trees, how to manage insect and disease pests, how to prune and fertilize, and of course, some basic tree climbing skills. Typically, mornings are spent inside, in a classroom, and then the afternoons outside climbing and learning how to identify trees. In addition to the course itself, UMass provides a typical college experience for students, who live in dorms (unless they choose to commute from home), eat at the dining commons, and participate in supervised social activities with classmates. Learn more at http://www.umass.edu/summer/precollege.html.

After speaking on the Chapter 87 panel at last year’s annual conference, Julie Steiner, J.D., published “Guardians of Municipal Public Trees:  Commonwealth of Massachusetts Tree Wardens’ Authority and Accountability,” 38 W. NEW ENG. L. REV. 377 (2016). The scholarly article is both a great addition to the tree warden archives and an excellent supporting case to update the Chapter 87 law to meet present needs. Read the article here.  You can also view it online in the Western New England Law Review Journal  at  http://digitalcommons.law.wne.edu/facschol/321/.  Don’t miss Dr. Steiner when she again joins the Chapter 87 panel at the 2017 conference!

Once again the response has been overwhelming for the workshop with Dan Tilton on October 27th.  The class is now filled. Thank you to all who support safety training!