Tree Talk: Town Hall and Monument Trees Get Arbor Day Trim

Bob Dobias of Swampscott likes beech trees and two of his favorite municipal trees are the beeches standing in front of Swampscott Town Hall.

On Arbor Day, Friday, the certified arborist and his crew from Leahy Tree and Shrub, a division of Leahy Landscaping, donated a full day to Swampscott.

They pruned the cherry trees and linden on the island near the "Entering Swampscott" sign at the intersection of Humphrey Street and Lynn Shore Drive. 

After that, they pruned cherry trees near the Monument then moved to Town Hall where they pruned the two large beech trees, one pear and one maple, said Dobias, manager of the Leahy tree division. 

The experienced tree workers included Nicholas DeSousa, Nelson Lopez, Alfredo Esteban and were led by Dobias. 

Here is a Question and Answer interview with the manager of the Leahy Tree and Shrub division.

Have you done this for the town before — volunteered on Arbor Day?

 This is the first time we have volunteered on Arbor Day for the town.  The tree division is in a growth stage and we do lots of work in Swampscott so we wanted to give back to the community who has provided work for us along the way. 

Why did you do this? 

 I live in Swampscott and Leahy's shop is just down the street in Lynn so we get to see those trees all the time.  We were glad we had the opportunity to do some work on them. 

As a tree guy what are you thoughts about the trees around Town Hall? There are some beauties.  What do trees, nice, well cared for trees do for that area? 

Town Hall's landscape is relatively simple but has some excellent mature specimens.  They provide a great backdrop for the many events on the grounds in the summer.  Beeches are my favorite tree and the two in front of Town Hall are some of my favorite municipal trees on the North Shore.  

What should people be looking for now as far as cherry blossoms?

When we pruned the cherry trees, we primarily removed dead wood.  Removing dead wood aids in the compartmentalization process where new wood grows over the base of a dead branch.  This prevents water and bacteria from entering the tree and causing decay.  On a few of the cherries, we also did some thinning and shaping.  We thin the trees to remove overcrowded and crossing limbs which pose problems in the future.  Shaping and shortening limbs will allow the tree to push nutrients to a fewer number of buds causing brighter, more aggressive growth.

Blossoms will be a little late this year due to a later spring but should arrive soon.