Inspection!
Inspections are a part of my work as landscape manager. As I rotate among different landscape crews, I train new people and inspect sites. For example, at one Langley site, out on the sidewalk, I immediately noticed a magnolia tree with branches reaching out over the sidewalk, a clear sign that I still had lots of training to do. Deal with obstructions like this as soon as possible. I can’t think of any more pressing tasks. It’s baffling why the crews ignore these obstructions and duck along with every other passerby.
Mid-season tree and shrub obstructions are quite normal. Plants grow with moisture and temperatures and often outgrow their limited space. So, we prune them to keep them in check. Obstructions happen along sidewalks, entrances, car ramps and exits and, given, the high traffic volumes, must be taken care of quickly.
Ready, duck!
While it might be fun watching a dog walker ducking to avoid losing his eyesight, it’s no laughing matter. One minute before the man walked through with his dog, a beautiful middle-aged jogger blew by and easily cleared the obstruction thanks to her shapely, petite body frame. But, a visually impaired individual might not be so lucky. Seeing eye dogs aren’t trained to notice magnolia tree branches, I don’t think. It’s possible for the poor lady to get “clocked” by the branches.
Easy fix
It takes literally two minutes to make a few heading cuts to remove the obstruction. That’s why it doesn’t make sense to leave it and walk on by. We don’t even need a landscape foreman to do it, anybody with snips should be able to make a few cuts. See the difference below.
Just do it!
Remove landscape obstructions as soon as you can. In the example above, I didn’t hesitate. I took my snips out and made a few heading cuts. Problem solved. No need to worry about visually-impaired passersby getting harmed. Be like me.
