Learn about plantation establishment and preventative arboriculture
- To reduce potential long-term tree issues, improve your tree management practises.
- Discover how to choose trees more effectively and how to reinforce and improve the health of existing trees.
- Learn how to remove trees and stumps safely.
- Discover how to construct tree plantations
- Gain the assurance you need to grow your business or your job.
- Spend less by studying at home.
7 Lessons with set task, 7 assignments. Online and elearning comes with self assessment tasks.
This course is designed to follow on from Arboriculture I, however it may be taken as a stand alone short course.
TUTOR’S COMMENT “This course provides graduates with more in-depth knowledge than Arboriculture I by focusing on such topics as transplanting techniques, environmental control, environmental tolerance, and strengthening techniques, as well as felling and stump removal. The course culminates with a lesson on establishing and designing a tree plantation geared at the serious professional.” – Gavin Cole B.Sc., Psych.Cert., Cert.Garden Design, MACA, ACS Tutor.
Lesson Structure
There are 7 lessons in this course:
- Planting Techniques
- Soil, Water, Climate, Maintenance, Matching a tree to the site, Local regulations, Plant at the right time, Planting techniques, Plant size and age, Container type, Buying a tree, How to plant a tree, Watering method, Transplanting a large tree, Preparing for transplanting, Aftercare, small feature trees, Transplanting deciduous trees, Pruning at planting, Pocket planting, Slope serration, Wattling, Planting on Arid sites, Direct seeding, Spray seeding, trees with berries,
- Controlling Plant Problems
- Temperature, Frost, Winds, Acclimatisation, Tree guards, Other Tree Problems (Fire damage, Fire Resistant trees, pollution and toxic reactions, Soil contamination, Treating foliage burn, Soil rehabilitation, Trees to extract soil contaminants, Soil chemical composition, Air pollution and tree growth, pollutant tolerant trees, Pollution intolerant trees, Trees to control Urban air pollution, Dry soils, Symptoms of drought stressed trees, Dry soil tolerant trees, Trees for hot sites, Drainage problems and trees, Wet tolerant trees, Tree health problems, Resistant plant species, Choosing and using pesticides safely, Biological controls of pest and disease, Life cycles, Tree termites, Tree injections, Tree nutrition and nutrition management, Fertilisers
- Strengthening Weak Trees
- Trimming, Trimming technique, Adverse responses to trimming, thinning, Bracing, temporary props, Modern bracing systems, Bolting, Rodding technique, Guy wires, How strong is dead wood, Cabling
- Controlling Damage Caused by Plants
- Tree damage, Tree root problems, trees that can cause problems with drains, Precautions with drains, Selecting and using trees near drains, Limiting root problems, Root pruning, Trees and the water table (Aquifers), Trees and power lines, Poisonous trees,
- Tree Felling and Stump Removal
- Tree evaluation systems, Calculating tree value, Tree removal, Why remove a tree, Tree felling methods, Axe, Saws, Winches, Chain saw, Controlling the fall, Different methods or removing stumps, Protecting trees, National Tree registers, Measuring tree height, Keeping a work site safe, risk assessment, Duty of care, Costing jobs,
- Tolerant Plant Species
- What to plant where, Tree data required, Influence of trees on buildings, Species suitability, Planning considerations, Harsh environments, frost protection, Frost resistant trees, Sun protection, Mulching, Fencing, wind protection, Wind tolerant trees, Soil degradation, Saline tolerant trees, Lime tolerance, Acid tolerance, Hardy trees for inner city, Review of several major genera.
- Establishing a Tree Plantation
- Windbreaks, Windbreak design, Choosing windbreak species, Designing tree plantations, Producing drawings to scale.
Each lesson culminates in an assignment which is submitted to the school, marked by the school’s tutors and returned to you with any relevant suggestions, comments, and if necessary, extra reading.
Aims
- Describe how to plant a tree of a certain advanced size at a particular location.
- Describe tree injection, including the method and uses.
- Determine the circumstances in which strengthening operations on trees are necessary.
- Compare the various approaches to eradicating roots that infiltrate underground pipes.
- Determine how much it will cost to remove a specific tree.
- Choose the right tree species for the site you visited and studied.
- Create a plan for removing a tree that includes both tree cutting and stump grinding.
- Analyze mature tree specimens from various genera to look for any trends in the issues those trees are experiencing.
- Create criteria that take into account site constraints, cost, and function for the construction of a tree plantation on a certain site.
Investigate Unique and Novel Tree Planting and Establishment Methods
Pocket gardening
Just creating a pocket or basin on a slope and using the soil removed to build a wall around it, especially on the down slope side, is what is meant by this. The wall will then hold onto the water and assist in halting soil erosion. The pocket won’t be swept away in torrential rain thanks to an overflow spillway in the wall. Before the plant takes root, the pocket might need to be periodically reformed.
Serration on a slope
Terraces can be built on sloping terrain to promote plant growth and lessen erosion. For the purpose of retaining water, slopes are divided into steps that are around 1 m by 1 m in size. The steps will crumble over time, but by that time the plants will typically have established themselves. Also, the eroding stairs’ loose soil offers good germination spots for seeds dropped by other surrounding plants.
Wattling
In order to stop erosion, this method makes use of bundles of branches put on slopes. Long, thin branches are knotted together and buried partially in contoured trenches that have been dug across the hill, or the slope’s surface is simply covered in cut branches and dry vegetation.
In other instances, species that readily take root (such willows or poplars) were used to construct the wattling bundles, which later became a component of the slope stabilisation plan. A different option is occasionally adopted, particularly in nations where willows or other suckering plants that have been imported run the risk of becoming invasive weeds.
Planting in Dry Areas
Plant establishment can be quite challenging in desert, non-irrigated areas. Simple solutions to the water shortage problem include mulching, reducing weed development, spreading plants widely apart, and making saucer-shaped depressions in the soil to hold water. Moreover, smaller plants have a higher probability of establishing themselves.
In regions with clear night skies, condensation traps have also been utilised with some effectiveness. Building a planting basin with a 1.5 m diameter and a depth of 30 cm is one easy way to capture the moisture from condensation. The plant is positioned in the centre on a mound, and polythene sheeting is used to capture soil moisture that is evaporating.
Seeding directly
Although the outcomes are less predictable than when established nursery-grown plants are transplanted, direct seeding is an affordable means of reestablishing vegetation.
The most crucial element is to get rid of weed growth before sowing to reduce competition with the seeds as they germinate. The best results come from an initial application of chemical herbicides; alternatively, cultivation can be utilised to promote the germination of dormant weed seeds, which can subsequently be sprayed. The soil can be lightly worked to create ideal germination conditions for the seed. The seed can then be dispersed either manually on small sites or mechanically using hoppers or direct drilling on bigger sites. The location has to be fenced off, and additional weed management is necessary.
Natural regeneration can produce good outcomes where there is already a cover of local vegetation. The area has to be enclosed with fencing, and the weeds on the tree’s windward side—where seeds are most likely to fall—should be pulled.
sprinkling seeds
A method that is frequently utilised on places with steep slopes or restricted access is spray seeding. A slurry of water and wood cellulose components contains seeds (ie. paper, wood shavings, sawdust etc). The liquid is then sprayed onto the ground’s surface using a pump. The slurry serves as a surface for mulching protection for the seeds.
