2010 Massachusetts Tree Steward Training Program

Today Peggy and I went to the first day of the Massachusetts Tree Steward Training Program at the Harvard Forest in Petersham, Massachusetts. The conference was presented by the Massachusetts DCR Urban & Community Forestry Program & Massachusetts Community Forestry Council. And was sponsored by: The USDA Forest Service and The Massachusetts Tree Wardens & Foresters Association.

We learned a variety of different things. We started the day with tree identification, then had a quick introduction to the working forest initiative, tree response to pruning, and then after lunch we learned about utilizing tree inventories and iTree. Then we finished the day with a look at Worcester as a case study.

The best part of the day was learning about utilizing tree inventories. We were introduced to google fusion tables. This is going to be a great resource for use to look at where all of our trees, keep records of all our tree health and create maps of where our trees are.

9:00 Registration and Coffee

9:30 Welcome and Overview
(Eric Seaborn & Alan Snow)

9:45 Tree Identification Outside
(Joe Perry)

10:45 Introduction to the Working
Forest Initiative (Douglas
Hutcheson & Michael
Downey)

11:30 Trees Response to Pruning
Out Doors (Brian Kane)

12:30 LUNCH, provided

1:30 Utilizing Tree Inventories
(Mike Olkin)

2:15 Break

2:30 Introduction to iTree Tools
(David Bloniarz)

3:30 Looking at Community
Trees, Worcester a Case
Study (Eric Seaborn)