Jake Berg – Tree and Evergreen Field Liner Production
What is the biggest mistake people make when caring for a tree?
People avoid wrapping tree trunks on young trees from November through February. It avoids damage to the tree during the rutting season of deer and sunscald during warm spells during mid to late winter. Sunscald is caused by the rapid fluctuation in temperature of bark cells, causing the trunk to split.
What is your favorite tree and why?
Paperbark Maple due to its multi-seasonal appeal. They have exfoliating coppery orange bark along with vivid red-orange fall color.
What is a typical day like for you ?
A typical work day consists of helping take care of Rosehill’s 4 tree farms with roughly 600 acres in production. Daily job responsibilities consist of structural pruning trees, chemical weed control, staking, and cultivating. Seasonal responsibilities include helping dig 10,000+ trees and evergreens annually along with planting an average of 15,000 to 16,000 field liners.
What are some issues concerning trees currently?
Limited availability on 2 inch caliper shade trees, which was caused by bareroot tree shortages from our vendors due to the 2008 recession. Tree availability is increasing with each passing year although it continues to be tight on some items such as ginkgos, blackgums and lindens. A majority of the diverse shade trees will take anywhere from 2 to 5 growing seasons in our fields based on tree variety to reach a 2 inch caliper trunk.
What changes have you seen in the landscape industry in the past 5 years?
The landscape industry is beginning to emphasize more plant diversity which minimizes future epidemics. A diverse plant palette is the best approach to a landscape design- every plant has a place in different landscape styles. I focused on Ecological resilience and plant diversity in my design thesis while pursuing a double major in Landscape Architecture and Horticulture at NDSU.
So good to see a new picture of you Jake! We think of you each time we look at the lovely trees and evergreens you helped us with several years ago. We really like your plant philosophy and enjoyed the time we spent with you!