Tree Surgeon Takes Pride In Work.
Published in: Pantagraph (Bloomington, IL)
Date: 8/31/2006
By: Bob Holliday
Bill Jones thinks of himself as a tree doctor, not a tree cutter. To emphasize this point, Jones’ license plates say “Tree MD.” The owner of Jones Tree Surgery in Carlock has been in business about 30 years and is proud of the fact that he gets almost half of his work from referrals. “That means people had a good association and felt confident telling a friend,” he said. 1. How much of your work involves diagnosis and what part cutting down trees?
About 60 percent of my business involves tree care and diagnosis, with the remainder felling, trimming and consulting. I practice preventive maintenance, not only on trees but on shrubs. These plants can suffer from a lack of basic nutrients, including nitrogen, phosphates and potassium. 2. Why are trees and plants lacking some of these basic nutrients? Sometimes the reason is that topsoil has been removed from new subdivisions. When this happens, deep root feeding of trees can help. This is done by drilling holes in the soil and inserting nutrients. 3. What sort of equipment do you use if you have to trim a tree? I have a large bucket truck extending 62 feet and I have a motorized pole saw. Sometimes, it’s necessary to climb a tree, but when that’s the case, it’s not as simple as climbing a ladder and starting up the chain saw. It takes special training to climb and use a chain saw. 4. Do you work alone or do you have employees, and what do you base your fee on? Depending on the amount of work, I use two to four employees. The fee is based on the amount of danger, the amount of time a tree takes to fell and where a tree is located. 5. Where is most of your work based, and what do you like most about your job? Ninety percent of my work is in Bloomington-Normal.
My greatest satisfaction comes from the fact that I’ve taken trees that would have died and worked to bring them back to health.