Flashback to 2012
Getting landscape industry certified was a battle. I had to stretch but I did it. And today, Facebook reminded me of the awards dinner I attended in 2012 with my then-boss.
It’s all smiles in the picture but getting certified was a battle. Because I’m shy, my boss had to sign me up and threaten me to go do it. Written tests are easy but the practical stations stretched me hard. Imagine a landscape judge staring at you for half an hour and scoring you as you go. It was very unpleasant; and I’m not even counting former employers watching from a distance. I swear they were just trying to throw me off.
The steps
Once your employer pays the testing fees, you have to go. The CLNA no longer puts on the testing days but back in 2011, they held two testing days a year; one in spring and one in fall. It took me twelve months to get it done. In November 2010, I failed two stations: blower and planting and staking. Then, in spring, I failed planting and staking again. That left me waiting until November to finish it off.
When I showed up at Kwantlen Polytechnic University in Langley, BC, on a Friday, I sat the written exams and then did a few practical stations. The rest had to wait for Saturday.
Now, everything went well on Saturday, until I got to the backpack blower station. To start the blower, I placed my hand on the box, not on the handle, which is a safety violation. The back of the blower tends to be hot so it’s not a good place for fingers. I didn’t get flagged but it was a large enough deduction to fail me.
Planting and staking
I will forever remember this station because I had to do it three times; it was the only time I had requested a different judge (the first dude failed me twice already) and, years later, I would sit in the judge’s chair and score candidates for one day.
Here’s what nobody told me: the station is testing your plan and specifications reading, not your tree planting ability. You have to duplicate whatever is in the diagram, the way a client would expect you to follow his specifications.
Why do it?
Why go through all the hassle to get landscape industry certified? Because it’s there, and it shows you’re serious about the industry. Passing gives you confidence; and employers automatically know that you have the basic skills to help them out. And they can charge higher rates with certified workers; and those workers are less likely to mess up and more likely to produce good work.
As of today, I’m the only CLHT certified worker on staff.
And, I am also a father. In 2011, my daughter was 5 and my son 3, and it wasn’t cheap living in North Vancouver. It still isn’t cheap but today they have part-time jobs. In 2012 certification brought me a small raise at work.
In conclusion, getting landscape industry certified wasn’t easy but I’m glad I did it. I make more money and I’m more confident.
