Town hacks

[Brush Hog]

Why is it everyone else must be a licensed arborist but towns can let loose the hacks to trim tree's in the winter ?? I saw some BASIC mistakes for trimming. Not making a undercut before cutting limb to prevent peeling bark down 1/4 of the tree. Might as well just cut it down now. Senseless trimming just to keep them busy in the winter too. I like when they cut up on top of a rock cliff. Like that's going to get in the way of mowing.

P.S. I'm not putting every town worker under this statement just ones around me. I'm sure there are ones that know what the hell they are doing

 

[Ekka]

Pics please, nothing like a good public flogging is there.:hmm3grin2orange:

Name the town and lets flog them good, we can even email them a link to their craftsmanship and let them know it's on global display.

 

[OTG BOSTON]

More details!!!!

I work for a small town. Only Certified Arborists are allowed to work our contracts BUT the power companies can do whatever the f they want! Stubbing, ripping, name it. (they have actually gotten much better at not doing this).

There is also the factor of disgruntled homeowners "pruning" "their" trees which are in fact town trees. When this happens I leave them there as a monument to their own stupidity (even though the reality is it reflects poorly on me!) I have even seen trees that have been girdled by homeowners in an attempt to get me to take them down. "Yes sir, we'll be right there to take care of that dangerous situation for you"......................................

 

[Ekka]

Problem is you need proof to bust them for girdling or poisoning street trees.

The power companies here do a very good job now, I reckon in most cases the city arbos and power workers do better then domestic contractors.

Whilst we do see the odd mess you'll see a domestic hacked tree in every street.

 

[Brush Hog]

I'll try to get some pics tomorrow. I drive by it bringing my daughter to pre-school. It's really funny because they don't even have a chipper so they load up a f-350 and go dump it. Talk about milking the taxpayers.

 

[windthrown]

City crew limbing

Not only limbited to cities... the county here cuts trees back on the sides of county roads. Zero regards for tree health. Too many to describe around here. Cut, slash, rip, tear, shread, peel, bend, girdle, kill. Half a complete tree limbed... the other half left. Tree tops bent over cracked... who cares? Bark peeled off whole side of tree... so what? Even some on OUR property here (county road cuts through the property). Does not matter to them as long as the right-of-way is cleared for x many feet. Spray the herbicide around and killl anything in its path. Double strength.

License you say? Civil authority is their license. In God we Trust.
"Badges? We don' need no steenking badges!!!"

:deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse: :deadhorse:

 

[Climb020]

I guess it would matter what the situation was. If it is straight residental tree work then do what you have to to get them to prune them right being your tax dollars are paying them. Some people just don't know what they are doing up there.

But if it is ROW work then that is another story. I didn't understand it until I started my new job. They do some ROW work and tree health is something that never crosses my mind. Cut, rip, top, spike or whatever you have to to clear it. Always thought it was hack work but you have a certain time to keep so just get it done.

 

[Baz]

I've seen what looked like a bushhog job just above guardrail height along roadsides. Ugly.

 

[Bermie]

Not only limbited to cities... the county here cuts trees back on the sides of county roads. Zero regards for tree health. Too many to describe around here. Cut, slash, rip, tear, shread, peel, bend, girdle, kill. Half a complete tree limbed... the other half left. Tree tops bent over cracked... who cares? Bark peeled off whole side of tree... so what? Even some on OUR property here (county road cuts through the property). Does not matter to them as long as the right-of-way is cleared for x many feet. Spray the herbicide around and killl anything in its path. Double strength.

:

Wow you could be describing exactly what goes on here!!
Our Department of Works and Engineering does roadside clearing for vehicles and power line clearance: all of the above PLUS they've taken to hoeing back ALL the ground cover to bare soil or rock up to five feet in some areas. All that accomplishes is give the weeds somewhere nice to grow and contributes to erosion.
Palms are cut right back to the heart, look like like a feather on a pimple, senseless.
They herbicide everything, nasturtiums, native and endemic groundcover and littoral plants, drives me nuts!!!
The funny thing is when they hit a private property verge, they leave stuff, so there is no rhyme or reason, just blokes out there who have been given a hoe and a machete and told 'cut everything'.

 

[Climb020]

Bermie they cut down the small stuff just to save money later so it doesn't get any bigger. Also there might be alot of fast growing weed trees that will cause interference quicker then the pruning cycle will allow. I know if it is small and in the ROW it depends what it is if it comes out.

Don't hate the guys out there doing the work, hate the guy behind the desk telling them all what to do.

 

[OTG BOSTON]

Get pro-active

I'll try to get some pics tomorrow. I drive by it bringing my daughter to pre-school. It's really funny because they don't even have a chipper so they load up a f-350 and go dump it. Talk about milking the taxpayers.

Maybe you could give them a quick training session? Not too tough to do, won't take a long time. Easier than pointing fingers..............................

Milking the taxpayers would be if they bought a brand new chipper to do this part time trimming.

 

[Bermie]

Bermie they cut down the small stuff just to save money later so it doesn't get any bigger. Also there might be alot of fast growing weed trees that will cause interference quicker then the pruning cycle will allow. I know if it is small and in the ROW it depends what it is if it comes out.

Don't hate the guys out there doing the work, hate the guy behind the desk telling them all what to do.

I totally agree with you on the guys out doing the work, they work hard, out all day in the heat breathing fumes and risking their lives on the side of the road, they've been told to do it, not necessarily their fault.

I suppose you'd have to see what goes on here, on our north shore there are miles of Tamarisk (sea spruce) that were planted for windbreaks and the power lines are above them. Now, they go out on a three to four month cycle and absolutely hammer these shrubs back with machetes. With the amount of regrowth being all soft herbaceous sprouts, all they would need to do is use a hedge trimmer to keep it under control, that would be quicker, and save time AND money.
Also any palms in the area whether or not thay are anywhere near the verge or in danger of getting near the power lines in the next ten years are stripped of all leaves bar two or three around the heart.
A lot of the roadside groundcover, is soft herbaceous stuff, aspargus fern, nasturtiums, seaside goldenrod, sea-ox-eye, turnera, weedelia, all small soft stuff that gets 'pruned' by passing vehicles, and is never a problem. This vegetation actually has the effect of suppressing invasion by the fast growing woody trees and shrubs and more noxious weeds, but they hoe it off completely and then every 3 months they spray it with roundup. I've watched some verges turn into little deserts, coated only by sick looking moss, or gradually erode into sand pits, instead of soft tumbling vegetation that harms no-one.

You may have guessed its a bit of a pet peeve of mine. The Parks Department tries to liase with them but their protests seem to fall on deaf ears!

OK enough of a rant from me. Peace and Love

 

[SRT-Tech]

wow. They have an F350 and they actually dump the logs, instead of using a chipper! HEAVEN FORBID! OH GREAT ELITE ARBOR LORD, PLEASE FORGIVE THE WORKING MEN FOR THEIR HEINOUS TRANSGRESSIONS TIS NOT THEIR FAULT THEY DO NOT USE THE LATEST BLINGBLINGBLING WOODCHIPPER TIS NOT THEIR FAULT THEY DUMP THE LOGS SO THAT OTHERS MIGHT ENJOY WARMTH IN THE WINTER PLEASE GREAT ELITE ARBOR LORD, PLEASE FORGIVE

 

[SRT-Tech]

for those who dont get it.....I was being SARCASTIC! :sword:

 

[adkranger]

I would much prefer my town throw what little brush they deal with on the back of a F350 than blow 20k+ on the biggest, baddest Brush Bandit that gets maybe 10 hours of use annually. Especially living in a small town with no commercial tax base, 1100 residents(I think this includes cats and dogs personally) and struggles to pay even the most meager expenses.

 

[rebelman]

That sounds like a good deal to begin with. But you could get a smaller chipper, one decent crew and a chipper can do ten or twenty times the cleanup versus someone hauling. This is especially important in storms. Also erosion projects would benefit from plentiful material. Even towns of a thousand population would benefit. Check the prices of the hauling contractors. Anybody on this site could probably do ten times the work for the contract price. The fuel reduction alone is phenomenal. Convict labor is the best. The trucks usually smoke. Hauling and Burning brush is inneficient as hell, and I think it's illegal to dump in landfills. Thanks for the chance to rant adkranger and arboristsite.

 

[GLM]

I"ve been employed municiply for just over 17 years, also had to start my own business becuase I couldn't make ends meet for the last seven years Here the suits that pay the bills are only concerned with the "budget". Not weather the job is done right or wrong, They could care less if you do a lousy job and the tree dies a year later, or a wall on a building falls over, as long as the whole job gets done on time and budget. The only way the the suits would entertain even hearing the word "Certified Arborist" is if the word "FREE" came before it. Some crews are good and some are not :deadhorse: , in the big sceme of things the only thing thats important is that you did not go over "budget" thats the bottom line. Sad to say that some trees get trashed by workers not knowing what they are doing but there are some good crews out there but the fact is here by the time you train a guy he leaves a year and a half later because he can't survive on the money so theres always a "new guy" crew. Here tree crews and DPW and Water depts. are at the bottom of the municipal barrel as far as money goes. The Police and Fire depts have the highest salarys and budgets get the most press($$$$$) and by the time the money gets down to the bottom the guys doing the pruning are making the least pay and have the smallest budget and generally the least amount of public support and equiptment. At the end of the day the boss is more concerned with how many feet of road you trimmed not that you did a A+ job, The funny thing I have found over the years is 50% of the people would complain that the guys you mentioned where hauling the brush away wasting time, and the other 50% of the people would be up in arms screaming if they saw a new chipper($$$) on the back of the truck even if it was saving time.?? There is never a way to make every one happy. The only way to make a differance is to run for selectman or city council and change the laws about how things get done, but I have seen over the years that the more local laws are changed the more $$$$ it takes to get the the same job done just be glad the guys in the F350 were not sleeping on the side of the road and actually working. :biggrinbounce2: Dont forget "GOOD" crews cost GOOD money. The private sector is chock full of good crews, I get wood from a few of them and for them to get good guys its a little easier because the cost of a good crew is passed along to the customer with money who is willing to pay for the best.

 

[younggun]

I've seen what looked like a bushhog job just above guardrail height along roadsides. Ugly.

around here they do use the brushhog, don't think there supposed to but it still happens

 

[BoesTreeService]

I agree with a previous post-a chipper of any size can save a great deal of time, we all know that. (Thats why we buy them) I am sure that any municipality that has a budget for tree trimming and removal has far more money budgeted for payroll than equipment. One chipper, whether bought for $5000 or $25,000 will over its life save that organization far more than that in wages. It doesn't make a crew hacks if they aren't given all the proper equipment, it just makes them inefficient. Whoever thinks that they don't need to "waste" the money on a chipper that will only be used a couple times a year, should lobby their town to sell their chainsaws and buy some axes. If they truly do only need them a couple times a year, find a damn rental outfit. Any truly efficient organization will not only recognize their equipment needs, but be able to justify them to their constituency. If you don't agree with how your town does business, quit wasting your time jabbing at them on here and get to some council meetings and make a difference.

 

[hornett22]

this IS CT!

i'm surprised you're surprised.nothing makes sense here.