Arborists are people who actually practice the science of arboculture which is the study of individual trees and plants. An arborist usually selects a specific tree or plant and tries to analyze how its health and growth can be improved or how the disease that it has been affected by can be destroyed. They do not focus on protecting the entire forest and its varied species of vegetation, instead Arborists try to preserve the population of one species of tree or flora at a time. Though in order to become a professional candidates will need the arborist certification from the government.
An individual arborist will make it his or her mission to protect and secure the life of one or two species of plants and not more than that. The different disciplines of arboculture are diagnosis and treatment of the endangered species of trees, their climbing as well as felling. This even involves the difficult job of carrying out the cabling and lightning protection of the tress. Sometimes arborists are also asked to write reports and provide consultation on tress that may be hazardous to public life, may be diseased or trees that may need protection from public because of its ecological importance. These professionals often offer advice on safe and eco-friendly means of gardening as well so as to protect the community.
Certified Arborist
In order to be a specialist in this field individuals need to be trained so as to become certified arborists. Though this certificate is not readily available in every country. They are scattered all over the world. In the USA the requisite is to pass the International Society of Arboriculture's test, apart from that the candidate must have three years of experience that proves his time spend gaining practical training as an arborist. The other qualifications in America for being deemed as an arborist are Board Certified Master Arborist (BCMA) as well as the Utility and the Municipal specialist.
In UK the qualifications provided do not usually allow arborists to be trained beyond chainsaw safety certification also known as NPTC there. Though many agriculture colleges offer national certificates for arborists, some diplomas, while a few colleges offer degree courses at bachelors and masters level. In France things get a little tricky, individuals in order to become an arborist need to gain a certificate from the French Ministry of Agriculture. The Management of Ornamental Trees is a arborist certification, while in order to climb the trees and inspect them or trim them, a separate certificate known as the Pruning and Care of Trees is mandatory.
While in Australia the training is wide-spread, the Australian Qualifications Framework authority offers many vocational and professional courses. That help you become a specialized arborist. Though the learning never stops, as arborists are expected to continuously update their knowledge and qualifications through practical as well as written exams.
Arborist Certification Online Courses
The International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) is the official authority in the US that conducts the Arborist Certification examinations. These exams have been made available online since 2006 though the candidate needs to go to a test center to do so. The details as to the venue of the test centers within and outside US as well as the test schedule are available on the ISA's website.
The certification is a matter of personal choice as the interested candidates get a chance to be evaluated by professionals who have years of training and work experience. The costs for an arborist certificate is $250 for ISA and Chapter Member and $350 for Non-Members. In order to be eligible for this test the candidate must have 3 years of full-time arborist work experience as well as 2 years of professional work experience.
The ISA certificate expires every 3 years therefore it must be renewed, though the renewal process needs some basic requisites to be completed. They being that during the 3 years of the valid certification the arborist must have gained a minimum of 30 hours of ongoing education in arboculture. The renewal depends on the candidates examination date and they are usually either on the 30th of June or the 31st of December, there are also renewal charges on the certificate.
Getting an arborist certification enables environment enthusiasts to contribute towards the welfare of nature. They dedicate their time and efforts trying to protect vegetation from the wrath of man. They examine and study the barks of trees so as to identify its age, that way they collect data in order to protect similar species of certain endangered trees.
