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Sad News – the Passing of Dr. George R. Stephens

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Dr. Stephens, processing flax at the Station’s Lockwood Farm.

The CT Tree Protective Association notes with sadness the passing of Dr. George R. Stephens.  Dr. Stephens was long-time Chief of the Department of Forestry and Horticulture at the CT Agricultural Experiment Station.  In that role, George had a close relationship with trees, arboriculture and arborists in the state.

Although George retired from the Station twenty years ago, there is still a strong contingent of CTPA members and Connecticut arborists who remember him well and with appreciation and respect.  There was a time when Dr. Stephens was ‘the guy’ with respect to the Arborist License.  As chair of the Tree Protection Examining Board, he organized the oral examination sessions for prospective arborists.  It was his signature that indicated whether you or not had passed, and whether you would get your license.

He also led the tree id exams and participated in the oral examination sessions.  With his crew-cut hair and matter-of-fact style of speech, he was seen as a bit formidable by many of the candidates.  More than a few candidates of that era hoped that they would not draw him in their oral exam.

The truth of the matter, however, is that George was a very friendly person who was also honest, fair and helpful.  In particular, he looked out for the person who showed by their preparation and interest that he or she wanted to be an arborist.  In those cases, and just in general, he was always forthcoming with his advice.

For years, George was a mainstay of both arboriculture and CTPA, providing updates at successive Annual Meeting on the status of the Arborist License and tree care related activities.  Dr. Stephens was a highly regarded researcher at the Experiment Station.  His wide ranging interests covered the gamut of tree and tree health issues, and beyond.  His writings were many and extended from relating defoliation to mortality in Connecticut’s forests to ways to help match vegetable crops to the nutritional needs of the people of Connecticut.

Details regarding services for Dr. Stephens are included in his obituary.  A wake will be held in North Haven on Wednesday evening, July 12, 2017.

CTPA Safety Corner – Ticks

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With regards to ticks, the summer of 2017 will be a summer of concern.  In Connecticut, all reports are that the number of ticks found in the woods and in the fields are up this year, and that the proportion of ticks that are infested with the various human disease organisms that ticks carry is also up.  (Several news stories covering this can be found on the CAES “In the News” page).

Which makes ticks a matter of particular concern for all those who work around trees.  Now is a good time for anyone associated with tree care to go through a basic review of ticks.  This review should cover:

  • what ticks are,
  • why we should be wary of ticks, and
  • what to do to protect yourself.

What Ticks Are:  the definitive summary of all things related to ticks in Connecticut is the Tick Management Handbook, prepared by Dr. Kirby Stafford at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station and published in 2004.  In Connecticut, the three major tick species that are of concern from a public health perspective are the American Dog Tick, the Deer Tick (aka the Black Legged Tick)  and the Lone Star Tick.  The third is primarily of concern nearer to Long Island Sound.

This free publication details the life cycle of these arthropods, the diseases they carry and management approaches that can be taken.  It is worth downloading a copy to have for reference.

Why We Should be Wary of Them:  A very recent publication by Conn-OSHA does a good job of summarizing the potential problems that can come from exposure to ticks.  This publication, Occupational Tick-Borne Disease Prevention and Workplace Job Hazard Assessment for Personal Protective Equipment, also outlines the approach that Conn-OSHA is proposing with regards to the responsibility that employers should accept in connection with employee awareness and PPE use in connection with ticks.  Conn-OSHA’s rule making applies primarily to state and municipal employees, but that doesn’t mean that their recommendations are not good ones for people to consider in private as well as public tree care.

What to Do to Protect Yourself from the Problems that Ticks Bring:  Most of the recommendations about protecting yourself with regards to ticks come down to basic common sense – know where ticks are apt to be, immediately remove ticks when you find them on yourself, wear light colored clothing to help in this regards and use insect repellents as appropriate.  Also, check your clothing and field items for ticks so you don’t bring ticks home with you, shower after being out in the field and look yourself over carefully for any attached ticks.  Remove any attached ticks promptly.

This advice is well-summarized in a very helpful, straight-forward manner by the Center for Disease Control (CDC).  The CDC’s webpage on ticks includes links to the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) web page on Tick-Borne Diseases.  This page includes additional information for people who apt to be exposed to ticks on the job.  This page includes a link to the NIOSH Fast Fact card on protecting yourself from ticks and mosquitoes.  These Fast Fact cards can be downloaded for printing or ordered, so the employers can use them to assist in educating employees.

Further Note:  The CT Agricultural Experiment Station also manages a “tick testing laboratory” where members of the public may bring ticks to for identification and testing as to whether they are carrying specific tick-borne diseases.

On-Line Marketing for Tree Care Professional Workshop

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Tree Care Marketing Solutions together with Tree Care Industry Association is coming to Connecticut!

What is this all about?  This workshop will show you the proven keys to online marketing that gets real results for tree care companies – things that you can do yourself to bring in more leads, get more customers and increase your revenue in even the toughest market conditions.

When: August 10th  – 10am to noon OR  6pm to 8pm.

Cost: The cost for TCIA members or CTPA members is $45.00.  The cost for all others is $60.00.  To Register click on the link:  https://treecaremarketingsolutions.com/workshop-registration-hartford/

Where: The CTPA Meeting Room in Wallingford, CT ((60 Church Street(Rte 68) Suite 3A))

Go to the Tree Care marketing Solutions website for more information.    http://TCMSRoadShow.com

Looking for Bronze Birch Borers for Research!

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Dr. Claire Rutledge is looking for birch infested with bronze birch borer for research.

She needs infested trees with living beetles, and, due to federal laws, needs for those trees to be in Massachusetts. As beetles are emerging soon, it would be ideal to find them in the next 2 weeks. If you are removing infested trees from a property please contact her at Claire.Rutledge@ct.gov or (203) 974-8484 and she will meet you at the job site to take the material.

CTCC 2017 – Let’s Remember to Thank the Volunteers and Sponsors

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See a list of the Sponsors of the 2017 CT Climbing Competition.

Each year, it takes a leap of faith followed by a small miracle for the CTPA climbing competition to take place.  True, there is the solid leadership provided by Bud Neal and the excellent organizing work of the Climbing Competition Committee, with Bud, Charlie Iselin, Sandy Ingellis, Kevin Wyatt and Cathy Dvorsky aboard.  They all do great work.

Still, there are a lot of pieces that need to mesh on competition day.  The day does not happen if not for the volunteers who come out to help and the generous support of the sponsors.  For the approximately 25 climbers who participate each year, somewhere between 25 to 35 volunteers are needed so that the individual climbs go safely and successfully, and the scores and times are properly recorded.  Volunteer duties range from the jobs of Head Judge and Head Technician (Bruce Duffy and Danny Rodriguez, respectively, this year), to the individuals who orders the food and make sure the tents get set-up properly (mostly Sandy and Cathy).

judges looking up as the competitor sets his line

Judges and Timers watching Matt Reynolds set his line during the Master’s Competition.

For each event, there is at least one judge and more than one timer – so there may be as many as 4 or 5 officials at an event such as the work climb.  Additionally, both the work climb and the aerial rescue events require an in-tree tech, largely for safety reasons.  For the speed-climb and the footlock events, someone needs to run the belay lines, while back at the scorer’s table, there is the crack, ‘A-team’ of scorekeepers, entering the results as they come in and posting them for an audience that gets more eager as the day goes along.

Pulling such a team together of volunteers together is not easy, particularly when the jobs themselves require a high degree of knowledge and attention to detail.  This is where we go back to the leadership, and the hard work of the Committee in making sure all of the pieces are brought together – and aware of what they need to be doing on the day of the competition.

volunteers assist with climbing competition

As in-tree tech for the work climb, Emmett Shutts helps a competitor get set to go.

However, the day still cannot occur successfully without the sponsors.  Registration pays some of the costs, but there are also such expenses as the ropes used in the competition, the food and drink and, not the least, all of those cowbells.  The generous support of the sponsors is critical to the event happening.

The sponsors fall into 3 classes.  The Gold Sponsors donate $500 towards the event and, in return, get their logo placed on the climbers’ and volunteers’ t-shirts.  Silver Sponsors donate $100 and are noted as the sponsor of one of the climbing events.  Bronze Sponsors donate $50 and are listed in the CTCC program booklet, along with all of the other sponsors.  All are appreciated deeply.

See a list of the Sponsors of the 2017 CT Climbing Competition.

The generosity and enthusiasm of so many people is a large part of what makes the CTCC such a great event.  We are happy to take a moment to thank them for all that they contribute.

view of judges and sponsor

Behind the competitors is a strong team of volunteers and sponsors.

CT Tree Climbing Competition 2017 Results

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The 13th Annual Connecticut Climbing Competition, held this past weekend on May 6th, was a great success.  This year, the competition took place at Harrybrooke Park, a beautiful private park in New Milford.  24 Climbers took part – 3 women and 21 men.

The lineup of the participants of the 2017 CTCC

The full results of the competition have been published.  Tim Reynolds was in the lead in the men’s division coming out of the morning preliminary rounds.  He, his brother Matt and Kyle Donaldson were then invited, as the three top Connecticut finishers, to compete in the Master’s Challenge.

After Master’s Challenge was held in a great American sycamore.  After each challenger had climbed, Matt Reynolds was determined to be the winner, and 2017 Men’s Connecticut Tree Climber Champion, by a narrow 5.57 points over 2nd place Kyle Donaldson.

The three men finalists – Tim, Kyle and Matt. Matt holds the championship mug.

Because there were no Connecticut-resident female climbers, the Women’s Master Challenge was not held.

Many people are deserving of special thanks for this great CTPA tradition.  Bud Neal, most of all, as the main organizer and helmsman throughout, but also Charlie Iselin, Sandy Ingellis, Cathy Dvorsky and all of the individuals who served on the organizer committee and/or participated as volunteers on the day of the event.  The day cannot work without planning or without judges, timers, score-keepers, the registration table, the logistics team and more.

There are two people that CTPA would particularly to mention.  The first is Sean Emmons, whose company, Emmons Tree and Landscaping Service of New Milford, contributed so much to allow the day to happen.  The second is Billy Mo Buckbee, Executive Director of Harrybrooke Park, who was unfailingly generous, supportive and helpful throughout – and who shared so many interesting tidbits of history about the park.

Thank you all!  More Pictures are available on the Results Page.

The three women climbers – Becky, Bear and Maria

Congratulations after a great climb!

Invitation to tour Plum Island

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Dear Members of the CTPA,

 

I wanted to take the opportunity to extend an invitation to our membership to enjoy a tour of Plum Island NY on August 23 of this year. The trip will begin at the ferry dock in Saybrook in the morning and return mid afternoon. It will include an educational discussion describing the purpose and function of the island and facilities in the morning. Afterward we will venture outside and tour the island, taking a few short walks offering several opportunities to observe the indigenous flora and fauna.  We will see fabulous views and enjoy the day in conversation and curiosities.

To register call Mike Gaines BEFORE JUNE 1 at 203-705-8694 and he will provide you with more details!

The trip is limited so call soon and reserve your space.  Remember the deadline is JUNE 1!!!

Thank you,

Mike Gaines

Encourage people to attend the CT Tree Climbing Competition!

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And, consider attending yourself!  Especially if you have not been to a CTCC before.

On Saturday, May 6th, CTPA will host the 13th annual CT Tree Climbing Competition.  25 climbers from Connecticut and the region around the state will compete.  These climbers represent the range of people in professional tree care who climb trees – men and women, advanced climbers ‘in the peak of shape’ and much less experienced climbers – all fit in well at an event that is as much about camaraderie as it is about shaving seconds off of a timed event.

And, for an audience, the skill, athleticism and passion of the climbers can be highly engaging.  This is a great showcase for what goes into tree care and professional arboriculture.

The 13th Annual CTCC will be held at Harrybrooke Park in New Milford – 100 Still River Dr, New Milford, CT 06776.  CTPA members, especially those who live or work in the New Milford area, are encouraged to spread the word on the competition.  CTPA has produced a poster and a press release to help in letting folks know about this event – please share these with anyone (a local fire department, the local newspaper) who might be interested.

Thanks for helping to spread the word.

Foot Locking

Work Climb

Work Climb

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P.O. Box 1946 60 Church Street,(Rte 68), Suite 3A Wallingford , CT 06492
Phone: 203-484-2512 | Email: info@ctpa.org

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