Do I Need an Arborist or Landscaper?
Although their skill sets overlap, arboriculture and landscaping are two very different areas of expertise. If you have one or more large trees in your yard, or even several woody shrubs that you think might require special attention, you may be asking yourself whether you’d be better off with the help of an arborist or a landscaper. In this article we’ll break down what each expert does and which one is right for your backyard.
Landscapers
As the name suggests, landscapers offer the services of designing, reshaping and maintaining your landscape, as well as designing and installing hardscaped areas such as patios, outdoor kitchens, and outdoor fireplaces. Landscapers are subsequently highly knowledgeable in the visual, natural and structural elements of backyards. While most landscapers do possess knowledge of trees and shrubs, their knowledge is focused around the softscaping and hardscaping. So, in summary, most landscapers are not equipped or certified to climb, remove, reshape, or offer diagnosis for large trees - unless they're also a certified arborist.
Arborists
An Arborist on the other hand, is a specialised tree doctor who has been trained in maintaining the health of large trees and woody shrubs. An arborist is also able to give an assessment of whether or not a tree may be saved following storm or pest damage. When a tree needs to be removed because of changes needed to be made to the landscape, an arborist is the answer. Arborists possess the necessary equipment and expertise to deal with the removal of a tree in a way that is safe for both your property and family.
You’re very likely to require an arborist for long term maintenance of tree health through pruning, root care, and parasite control. Arborists also offer a number of legal and consultation services concerning boundary disputes involving trees, as well their placement in relation to power lines and other utilities.
Related: Should You Bother With An Arborist In Winter?
The arborist and landscaper therefore work in tandem with one another in maintaining an optimal landscape. While some projects may require one or the other, in most cases, the expertise of both a landscaper and arborist is necessary.
Juggling the schedules of two service providers can be time consuming and a nightmare to organize as a customer, while hiring one to subcontract the other can be expensive. For this reason, the best and most convenient decision for you is to choose a single company that offers both services concurrently.