Schedule Thursday Friday Tree Academy Student Posters CEUs

Updated: 02/11/2025
Schedule is subject to change.

Commercial/Municipal Session 3
Utility Session 3

Tree Academy
Closing Keynote Session

Learn more about the presenter by clicking on their name.

8:15 - 9:15 am
Feature Presentation: FEEDER ROOT HEALTH: IDENTIFYING A HEALTHY ROOT SYSTEM AND UNDERSTANDING THE IMPACT OF ROOT ROT
Dr. Stephanie Adams, Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist, Plant Pathology & Microbiology, Texas A&M University

Feeder roots, or absorptive roots, play a crucial role in a tree's ability to absorb water and essential nutrients from the soil. Though they are among the smallest roots in a tree's root system, their function is vital to the overall health and vitality of the tree. When these roots are compromised, a tree struggles to perform essential processes such as defense response, growth, wound sealing, and photosynthesis. This presentation will explore how to identify healthy root systems across different tree species, along with methods for detecting signs of stress or dysfunction caused by biotic or abiotic factors. Understanding these issues is critical for effective tree management and health maintenance.

10:00 - 10:45 am
PRUNING FOR STABILITY: MANAGING CROWN MASS & ASYMMETRY
Dr. Kim Coder, Professor Emeritus, University of Georgia, Athens

In order for trees to be stable and remain structurally sound, wind-forced twist, bend, and sway must be controlled along the stem and branches, along with tree height.  Crown mass center position in a tree, and extent of crown asymmetry, are major mechanical issues for trees, both of which can be managed with effective pruning.  Storm damage and a legacy of past pruning issues can generate unacceptable risks in standing trees.  This talk will review tree structural geometry.

10:45 - 11:30 am
STORMS OVER THE URBAN FOREST: PLANNING, PREPARING, RESPONDING, AND RECOVERY
Dr. Richard Hauer, Director of Urban Forestry, Eocene Environmental; Professor Emeritus of Urban Forestry, University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point

Storms Over the Urban Forest is a backdrop to lead a presentation on how everyone in the audience is a part in making the urban forest safer and long-lived. First and foremost, the citizens of a community are ground zero for the planning to develop storm resiliency in a community. What we do is really for the citizen client across public and private landscapes. This talk discusses the actions and steps that commercial, municipal, and utility professionals take to prepare for storms. The plan follows proven preparedness such as plant and site section, training plants for resiliency, and steps taken for the safe and effective response to storms. The response phase involves the tree responders teamed with an entire team versed to educate and inform the public on the progress of recovery and what to expect. The recovery phase will detail the steps and key findings with debris removal and recovery, when to remove or retain a tree, case findings from throughout the United States, and more action during the phase that may seem to never end. Finally, a mitigation phase provides a backdrop for the stage that uses lessons learned to improve management of tree populations and tree information systems to better prepare for the next storm. Storms happens and so does preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation. Regardless of if you are a utility, commercial, municipal, or allied filed, every person in the audience will walk away with tangible take-home lessons to learn from and apply in their work.

11:30 am - 12:00 pm
UNDERSTANDING HURRICANE HELENE TREE FAILURES IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
April Wilson, Owner, Stump Sprouts LLC

Following Hurricane Helene in Western North Carolina, there was a significant quantity of tree failures. We experienced 13-22” of rain in the :00  pman of just two days, followed by heavy wind gusts. In the weeks following the storm, while performing tree work, I created a study to compile statistics to understand which trees were more prone to failure in an extreme weather event such as this. Method: Along with another colleague, we compiled information on 300 tree failures, accounting for species, failure type, any obvious defects, live crown ratio, and diameter. These trees were observed in nine different towns scattered throughout Buncombe and Henderson Counties, NC. The locations were almost exclusively suburban, and not in locations that were flooded. Results: We found that Oaks represented the highest percentage of failures, at 43%, and Pines at 24%. Trees with no observable obvious defect made up 83% of the failures. The failures were 83% full root ball failures. Live crown ratio did not appear to have a correlation to likelihood of failure. Large trees (>25” DBH) made up 48% of failures, while medium trees (16-24”DBH) made up 35% of failures, and small trees (<16” DBH) made up 17% of failures. Conclusion: There was a higher likelihood of failure for large, healthy trees, particularly Oaks and Pines, during a weather event such as this. There appears to be a correlation between height and likelihood of failure, as those species comprise the tallest trees in the areas surveyed.

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8:15 - 9:15 am
Feature Presentation: BUILDING A FAIL-SAFE WORKPLACE: SAFETY, TRAINING, AND HUMAN PERFORMANCE
James Wendt, National Training Coordinator, Xylem Kendall

Additional authors, Ray Crump and Paul Dickson, Xylem Kendall

This engaging topic explores how safety and training go hand-in-hand to create a workplace where human performance thrives without unnecessary risk. Central to this is the NIOSH Hierarchy of Controls, which guides us to prioritize hazard elimination, engineering solutions, and administrative strategies—reserving personal protective equipment (PPE) as the last line of defense.

We all know that we could operate a chainsaw without wearing protective CHAPS and still not cut ourselves, if we’re perfect. But we also know we’re not perfect. Mistakes happen. That’s why we wear CHAPS: they act as a fail-safe, stepping in when human error does what it inevitably will.

This example highlights why safety strategies must anticipate human error, ensuring multiple layers of protection with PPE as the final barrier. By integrating safety into training and designing for real-world human performance, we create workplaces that are not just functional but resilient.

10:00 - 10:45 am
INTRODUCING SMART TREE CANOPY ASSESSMENTS: HOW TECHNOLOGY ADVANCEMENTS ARE REVOLUTIONIZING TREE CANOPY ASSESSMENTS
Will Ayersman, Geospatial Services Manager, Davey Resource Group, Inc.

Technology is a critical component to advancing planning and sustainability goals by the way we analyze and contextualize information. With new space technology being deployed rapidly, collecting information is now faster than ever before. To address the demands for more near real-time data, satellites can provide those capabilities at scale.

In efforts to establish greener communities, urban tree canopy assessments have been conducted for the better part of two decades. These assessments depend on available imagery and LiDAR with the outcome of the project depending on the temporal timeframe of the existing data. With new satellite data being captured, communities can rely on more current data. LiDAR, in particular, is a great tool to analyze tree canopy very accurately. Recent deployments of space-borne LiDAR systems will provide a great way to update land cover information and conduct change analysis at a much quicker rate.

By implementing these new data sources, how we analyze tree canopy information will undergo a major renovation. This presentation will review current methods of conducting tree canopy assessments and describe new innovative ways that we will be able to use tree canopy data to meet sustainability goals via Next Generation Urban Tree Canopy Assessments.

10:45 - 11:30 am
DR. ALEX SHIG­O - THE FATHER OF MODERN ARBORICULTURE
Tim Walsh, Vice President of Safety & Training, The Townsend Company, LLC

Discover the life and groundbreaking contributions of Dr. Alex Shigo, often regarded as the "Father of Modern Arboriculture." This presentation delves into his innovative research on tree biology and decay, his influential theories like Compartmentalization of Decay in Trees (CODIT), and his lasting impact on tree care practices worldwide. Celebrate the legacy of a scientist whose work continues to shape the arboriculture industry, inspiring generations to care for trees with deeper understanding and respect.

11:30 am - 12:00 pm
SUSTAINABLE URBAN FOREST CERTIFICATION
Paul Johnson, VP, Urban and Community Forestry and Career Pathways, Sustainable Forestry Initiative

Abstract Pending

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1:15 - 1:45 pm
CONNECTING ISA CERTIFIED ARBORISTS WITH COMMUNITIES
Chaz Griffith, President of the Board of Directors, Tennessee Urban Forestry Council

The Tennessee Urban Forestry Council (TUFC) is a member-lead non-profit that inspires and empowers both professional and community tree stewards to plant, grow, and sustain urban and community forests. With an abundance of arboricultural expertise to offer, ISA Certified Arborists play an active role in educating community tree stewards through TUFC's programs. In this presentation, Chaz Griffith, the TUFC Board President and Arborist with Metro Nashville, will share how the Arboretum Certification and Tennessee Tree Stewards programs connect ISA Certified Arborists with communities, as well as how a state's urban forestry council can provide educational programs for ISA Certified Arborists.

1:45 - 2:45 pm
HOW HOT IS IT? ESTIMATING HEAT LOADS FOR TREES
Dr. Kim Coder, Professor Emeritus, University of Georgia, Athens

With summer heat loads continuing to increase, a simple way of determining relative heat loads in the field for trees and planting sites is presented. This talk provides a simple means of quickly estimating site heat loads and how associated water and physiological stress levels would be impacted. Tree health care providers can then adjust their site management.

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