To say that the crew at Dave Leonard Consulting Arborist, Inc. has been busy since the ice storm in late January ravished thousands of trees in central Kentucky would be akin to saying the employees at H&R Block are busy the night before taxes are supposed to be post marked: it's a gross understatement.
Lexington, KY -
The company, helmed by arborist Dave Leonard and his 30-plus years of experience in tree care, education and advocacy, is a professional lot of horticulturists, biologists, foresters and impressive tree scramblers, concerned with anything and everything related to trees - even properly installed tire swings.
"We have done tire swings," said Leonard, an International Society of Arboriculture certified Master Arborist. "We can do tire swings correctly. We don't want to wrap a chain or rope around a limb. We actually drill and set an eyebolt into it."
Most people associate tree companies with tree removal, and while this is a service the crew offers, it is almost always as a last resort, such as when public safety or structures are in danger. "If it's going to fall on somebody, that's a problem," Leonard said. "We say take it outÖ but replant another one. It's smaller, but give it time."
The company also maintains a nursery of about 5,000 trees on a farm on Briar Hill. Leonard is a staunch promoter of the Burr Oak (Quercus macrocarpa), which has the potential to last 500 years - he's such a fan that he's had the name of the tree on his license plate for the last 15 years. He's not an ardent supporter of trees that, regionally, look pretty then deteriorate quickly, such as the Bradford Pear. "It's a great tree for the landscape industry, because they fall apart after 15 years and you get to plant them a new one," Leonard said. "But I can't do that. We want to plant a tree that's going to last a while - 50 year minimum."
During a time when many homeowners are opting just simply to remove a tree because of the recent damage the plants sustained, it's important to keep in mind the countless advantages, not all purely aesthetic, trees bring to a landscape, such as providing shade, decreasing storm-water runoff and promoting biodiversity. And, above all else, they help sustain all life forms by turning carbon into oxygen.
"If you like breathing, you might think about what trees do for you," Leonard said. "If you like clean air, they catch a lot of the particulates and actually turn it into wood - that's called carbon storage. Every tree is a carbon storage unit, and carbon is our main polluter, so there you go. That's what trees do for us."
As a guide to help readers be more informed about the social and physical benefits of a tree's presence, tips on adding trees to landscapes, as well as some tell tale signs that a tree might need some maintenance work, Sara Hesley, an employee at Dave Leonard Consulting Arborist, Inc. has submitted the following informational section. For more information on the company, visit www.dlarborist.com. - Robbie Clark