ASCA provides online learning to help Consulting Arborists expand their expertise and earn CEUs without having to leave their offices. Let experts lead you through timely topics and compelling lectures while you learn new skills and techniques you can
immediately put to work for your clients. Since this is online self-directed learning, you can learn where you want and when you want!
Click HERE for the Approved CEU Schedule.
Webinars & Conference Recordings:
2023 Annual Conference On-Demand Recordings
Click here to purchase the General Sessions
ASCA Members: $350.00
Non-Members: $450.00
Program Description: If you missed out on the 2023 Annual Conference in Renton, WA, now you have an opportunity to view all of the educational sessions that were offered. With the purchase
of the On-Demand Conference recordings you will receive a link to the conference session videos that were recorded in split-screen mode with the speaker and their presentation. You will also receive a link to the presentations and handouts.
To view the titles and descriptions of the conference programs, click here.
ASCA CEUs: 20 CEUs (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs:
N/A
Webinar: ConsuIting Do's and Don'ts
October 22, 2024
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-Members: $35.00
Webinar Description: Accepting any Consulting Assignment has its rewards and its challenges; we have to determine what the case is and whether we, as Consulting Arborists are competent to take the case, do we have the time to get the case completed and what is the actual problem of the client we are trying to solve?
As Consulting Arborists, we need to ask ourselves a number of questions before accepting a case, no matter how exciting or challenging the case may sound.
This presentation addresses different scenarios and situations that Consulting Arborists need to navigate to ensure you are providing a work product that is meaningful and necessary for your client.
This presentation will:
- Help you identify which cases to take, which ones to walk away from and how to educate your client on what they may really need in their situation.
- Help you refine the Assignment with your client to help them actually solve the problem they have.
- Provide an understanding of pitfalls in fulfilling the given assignments, which can lead to a poor reputation or "losing" a case for your client.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Webinar: Transform Your Consulting Arborist Reports with ChatGPT & AI
August 22, 2024
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-Members: $35.00
Webinar Description: Join us for an enlightening talk on how ChatGPT and AI are revolutionizing the field of consulting arboriculture! Discover how these cutting-edge technologies can enhance your report writing and communication, streamline your workflow, and kickstart your writing process.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Webinar: Wetlands - Don't Get Bogged Down
June 28, 2024
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-Members: $29.99
Webinar Description: This presentation is designed to provide consulting arborists an overview of protecting wetlands and how to perform a consulting assignment when presented with them. This presentation educates the audience about different types of protected wetlands, how wetlands are delineated, the different buffer zones, the various regulations regarding these zones, mitigation plans, understanding the documents associated with protected wetlands, submitting Notices of Intent and Request to Determine Applicability, and collaborating with conservation commissions..
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Webinar: Trees and the Law #2
March 28, 2024
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-Members: $29.99
Webinar Description: Street trees are ubiquitous in urban areas. They often provide substantial benefits to private landowners and to the general public. However, sometimes they can be obstructions and nuisances. What degree of ownership do property owners and municipalities have over street trees? What property rights are shared? What rights are subordinate to others?
This talk presents a sampling of cases from around the US that illustrate some of the conflicts arising between landowners, government entities, and the general public over their competing interests in street trees.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Webinar: A Tree is Never Just a Tree
October 25, 2023
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-Members: $29.99
Webinar Description: Trees are mostly thought of as a single organism - a plant, but this is far from the case. As humans we are becoming increasingly aware that our bodies do not operate on their own. We are covered with microbes, and they not only abound but also play important roles in our gut. We are holobionts, and trees are too. A tree is never just a tree, it is always a tree plus very many fungi and other microbes. Every tree is partnered by fungi, most obviously as the water/nutrient-supply mycorrhizal associations with their roots, but also with cryptic endophytic fungi. They also depend, indirectly, on decomposer fungi to break down dead tissues, especially wood, and is so doing release nutrients which become available for continued plant growth. Also, some fungi are pathogens, though most plants are resistant to most pathogens most of the time, and even when a pathogen is present it is not always a death sentence for the tree. This webinar will touch on pathogens briefly, but concentrate mostly on mycorrhiza, endophytic and decomposer fungi that are intimately associated with tree.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Webinar: Tree Architecture and Adaptive Growth
September 21, 2023
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-Members: $29.99
Webinar Description: In this beautifully illustrated slide lecture, Harvard botanist and urban ecologist Peter Del Tredici describes the basic biological principles that control the development of form in trees. The discipline of "Tree Architecture" was developed in the 1970s and describes the dynamic, modular construction process whereby every species of tree develops its characteristic shape. This architecture blueprint not only controls the development of trees under ideal circumstances but is also flexible enough to respond to charging environmental conditions and facilitate recovery from traumatic injury. Winter and early spring, before the leaves come out, are the best times to "read" the individual histories of trees that are embedded in their form.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Webinar: Who Owns Boundary Trees
June 8, 2023
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-Members: $29.99
Webinar Description: When a landowner wants to cut down a boundary tree, but his neighbor wants the tree to stay, both landowners want to claim some ownership and control over it. However, when a tree on a property line causes problems like root intrusion or branch failure, neither want to claim ownership. How are questions of ownership resolved?
Though deceptively simple and mundane, case law among the states varies significantly in nuance and application. This talk presents a sampling of several cases to illustrate the divergence in the law.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Webinar: Rethinking the Tree from the Ground Up: A Philosophical Approach
March 30, 2023
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-Members: $29.99
Webinar Description: How we learn about trees will determine the quality of our science, our language of trees and how we manage them for wellbeing and longevity. The internal life of the tree is saturated with bacterial and fungal diversity. The tree includes its soil system and microbiology. Evolutionary fitness may describe advantages through competition or through symbiosis. Such theories influence the way we think and communicate on Nature, including how trees age and survive into ancientness. When ancestral bacteria became incorporated into larger nucleated cells, such revolutionary innovations (that allowed the inclusion of mitochondria and chloroplasts) drove species complexity and supercharged the evolution of the green plant.
Dualism may be inherent to the human condition but how we experience Nature whether as integral to or separate from us influences our discourse on trees - whether they are seen as objects in the environment or as agents that influence their environment. Modern arboriculture relies on above-ground symptoms primarily to observe ill-health in trees that suggests pathogenic involvement. This is despite cumulative environmental effects from pollution and other damage to soil structure and health that impairs tree resilience. The invisible (within and beneath the tree) is where the tree's symbiotic arrangements principally function. The search for causative pathogens is important but should not distract from designing a science to understand the complex conditions that predispose ill-health in trees and disorders of our making. Set apart from Nature, our science and management of trees has existential consequences. This is a complex symbiosis that binds our destinies.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
2022 Annual Conference On-Demand Recordings
Click here to purchase the General Sessions
ASCA Members: $350.00
Non-Members: $450.00
Program Description: If you missed out on the 2022 Annual Conference in Louisville, KY, now you have an opportunity to view all of the educational sessions that were offered. With the purchase of the On-Demand Conference recordings
you will receive a link to the conference session videos that were recorded in split-screen mode with the speaker and their presentation. You will also receive a link to the presentations and handouts.
To view the titles and descriptions of the conference programs, click here.
ASCA CEUs: 20 CEUs (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Webinar: Fungus Wars in Trees
October 31, 2022
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-Members: $29.99
Webinar Description: Fungus in trees are rarely found growing alone but usually in communities with other fungi, and also with bacteria and invertebrates. Since they are all competing for space and resources, antagonistic interactions are the norm - fungi fight each other! They 'attack' and 'defend' their territory in different ways: (1) antagonism at a distance; (2) hyphal interference; (3) mycoparasitism; and (4) gross mycelial interaction. They employ a chemical arsenal of enzymes, volatile and diffusible organic compounds. Aggressive interactions are often the main reason for changes in fungal communities, but increasing/decreasing stresses and disturbance have major roles too. Lynne Boddy, Cardiff University, UK illustrates some of these antagonistic interactions, and the wood decay communities that develop.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Webinar: The Role of Ground-Penetrating Radar (GPR) for 100% Non-Invasive Inspection of Tree Trunks and Roots
June 8, 2022
This webinar is available for ASCA Members Only. Click HERE to log in to your ASCA account and access this 1-hour session.
Webinar Description: Tony Mucciardi, Ph.D., Founder and President of TreeRadar, Inc. presents on the role of Ground-Penetrating Radar (GPR) for non-invasive inspection
of tree trunks and roots. GPR is an old technology that was originally developed for measuring the thickness of glaciers in the 1930s. The technology has made significant advances as a non-invasive tool for detecting and measuring subsurface
entities such as buried land mines, native graves, buried utilities, integrity of rebar in concrete structures, etc.
TreeRadar, Inc. was formed in 2001 to determine if GPR technology could be applied to non-invasive inspection of roots and trunks. The GPR hardware was readily available but software was needed to sort out the complex reflections obtained from root masses.
The initial signal processing software produced 3D maps of the root mass but was not automated. Automated algorithms that would generate the predicted root morphology maps independent of the operator were available starting in 2010 and have evolved
since then. The system of hardware and software is call TRU™ (Tree Radar Unit). It is important to note that the TRU system does not render a diagnosis. That is the role of arborists certified for risk assessment/remaining life decisions. TRU generates
imagery for their use in these decisions. This presentation includes graphics that show the information generated for both trunk and roots via the 100% non-invasive inspections.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Webinar: Trees & Synthetic Turf
May 5, 2022
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-Members: $29.99
Webinar Description: This webinar focuses on the growing popularity of synthetic turf as ground cover and the effect it can have on trees. Leading synthetic turf expert, Joe Wadkins, aka "Ask JW," gave a background on synthetic turf including
materials used, installation methodologies, and general cost information. JW also discusses the impact on soil, microbial life, and the effects on tree root growth and health. This presentation also includes "before and after" site photos of completed
projects involving synthetic turf and trees.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
2021 Annual Conference On-Demand Recordings
Click here to purchase the General Sessions and Case Capsules
ASCA Members: $350.00
Non-Members: $450.00
Program Description: If you missed out on the 2021 Annual Conference in Lake Tahoe, now you have an opportunity to view all of the educational sessions that were offered (*does not include the pre-conference workshop sessions).
With the purchase of the On-Demand Conference recordings you will receive a link to the conference session videos highlighting the speakers as they talk through their presentations. You will also receive a link to access their presentations and handouts
that you can download to follow along with the speakers.
To view the titles and descriptions of the conference programs, click here.
ASCA CEUs: 20 CEUs (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added
to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Webinar: Champion Trees - Expert Panel Discussion
October 21, 2021
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-Members: $29.99
Webinar Description: Join ASCA for an insightful discussion with three experts on Exceptional/Champion Trees who share their experiences with this fascinating field of work. The panelists include Steve Nimz who discusses his work with
the Exceptional Tree Program in Hawaii, Dr. Eric Wiseman who is the state coordinator for the Virginia Big Trees Program, and Brian French, the co-founder of Ascending Giants and the Oregon Champion Tree Registry Coordinator. Our esteemed panelists
discuss their individual methods to find candidate trees, share photos of the trees they've found and measured, and share personal stories from their experiences.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Webinar: Impacts of Fire on Tree Structure - Observations from the Field
April 20, 2021
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-Members: $29.99
Webinar Description: This presentation offers an analysis of fire impacts on a site in Sonoma Valley. The site was damaged in the 1964 Hanley Fire, and then 53 years later in the 2017 Wine Country Fires, and again in the 2020 Glass
Fire. Examples are provided of post-fire tree damage and injury response. The Consulting Arborist's role in managing a fire-damaged site is discussed, including coordinating work with biologists and compliance with county and state agencies. Current
and future tree risk assessment priorities are examined.
ASCA CEUs:
1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs
: N/A
Webinar: Determining the Extent of Fire Damage to Trees
March 23, 2021
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members: $29.99
Webinar Description: Fires have ravaged much of California and other parts of the West over the last several years, causing the destruction of thousands of homes and more than 100 deaths in the Urban Forest Interface. Most of these fires have taken place during high wind events and in the late fall, after months of dry weather. This webinar examines the responses to fire of various species in California as well as assess specific damage to individual trees. It also covers the differences between assessing trees for risk immediately after a fire versus three or four years later, when decay and other after effects are more full realized. The webinar also illustrates the long-term impacts to forest structure and discusses management strategies to regain or improve the forest's resiliency to fires.
ASCA CEUs:
1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs
: N/A
Webinar: Tree Risk Management - An Alternative Perspective
December 4, 2020
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-Members: $29.99
Webinar Description: Modern tree risk management can be riddled with challenges, from difficult-to-define terminology such as "an acceptable level of risk," to excessive complication that may drive ordinary practitioners to fell trees rather than run the risk of being criticized for not using a "sophisticated" assessment method. Conventional risk theory is an important starting point, but it evolved based on industrial scenarios with reliable records on the number of accidents relative to the number of times an operation was performed, all facilitating a meaningful statistical analysis. Trees are different; every single tree, along with each locational scenario, is unique, and there are no reliable records on the number of trees, failures, or harm. In short, a quantification approach does not work very well, so what other options are there?
In this presentation, Jeremy Barrell, RCA #498, sets out his vision for common sense and intelligent analysis when assessing the tree risk. He will finish by introducing a practical international decision-making framework to help duty holders and practitioners alike defensibly manage trees without any numbers, calculators, or statistical analysis.
ASCA CEUs:
1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs
: N/A
Webinar: PechaKucha
October 20, 2020
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members: $29.99
Webinar Description: Each specialist presents their unique perspective along with Q&A in separate breakout rooms. Speakers included Mike Raupp, Dave Kelley, and Henry Kuppen.
ASCA CEUs:
1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs
: N/A
Webinar: A Tour of 10 Invasive Species Around the Nation
April 25, 2017
Click here to access this 1-hour session
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members: $70.00
Webinar Description: Join Michael Raupp as he reviews: Emerald Ash Borer, Asian Longhorned Beetle, Granulate Ambrosia Beetle, Hemlock Wood Adelgid, Thousand Canker Disease, Japanese Cedar Longhorned Beetle, Laurel Wilt, Golden Spotted
Oak Borer, and Japanese Maple Scale.
ASCA CEUs:
1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs
: N/A
On-Demand Business Development Series
Elements of A Successful Arboricultural Consulting Practice
Presenters:
Jim Clark, Ph.D., RCA #357
Barb Neal, RCA #428
Cabot Cameron, Druid Tree Service, Inc.
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members: FREE
Webinar Description: This webinar explores some of the major issues you need to address as you build a successful consulting practice. During
this interactive session our presenters will share their experiences and advice in starting up an arboricultural consulting practice, whether it be part-time or full-time. Elements of A Successful Arboricultural Consulting Practice will examine some
of the major issues you need to think about.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Business Development 201: Turning Contacts Into Clients and
Clients Into Raving Fans
Presenter: Michael T. Buell, FSMPS, CPSM
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members: $70.00
Webinar Description: Developing a thriving consulting practice takes time and dedication. Even the most highly qualified Consulting Arborists can have difficulty staying afloat if they don't develop strong business development skills. Most small business owners have the basics down, but they're unsure how to take it to the next level.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Business Insurance: What You Don't Know Can Hurt You!
Presenter: Mike McCartin, Joseph W. McCartin Insurance, Inc.
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members: $70.00
Webinar Description: Today it's more difficult than ever to properly ensure that you are protected from a lawsuit. Laws and regulations are constantly changing and some clients can be quick to sue. And, as a consultant, there are additional insurance coverages that you need to have. But, the question becomes - which types of insurance and how much do you need?
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Calculating Your Expenses to Manage Budgets and Determine Customer Fee Structures
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members
: $70.00
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Consulting Arborist Insurance Needs
Presenter: Chris Van Dusen, IOA Insurance Services Insurance Office of America
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members
: $70.00
Webinar Description: This webinar will enlighten participants on the insurance needs of a consulting arborist, explain possible claims scenarios and highlight terminology and concepts all consulting arborists should know and understand when selecting their insurance.
ASCA CEUs: .5 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Differentiating Yourself In The Market
Presenter: Michael Wollner, WollnerStudios, Inc.
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members: $70.00
Webinar Description: There's a nugget that exists in every company, the thing that truly make it different. This session discusses how you can use this nugget to create an identity and message designed to stand out, and choose communication channels that are based on any budget.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Introduction to Engineering and Architectural Plans (A Two-Part Series)
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members: $140.00
Webinar Description: As a Consulting Arborist, do you know what pertinent information you need from your clients - and what questions to ask - in order to accurately and authoritatively analyze the impact of your projects? Do you know which plans are critical to your understanding of a development project and its impact on trees? Do you understand the difference among the plans and know which ones you need to review to assess all the potential impacts to trees?
This two-part webinar is designed to be your primer on the plans typically used by engineers, land planners, developers, builders, and architects for development projects - large and small.
ASCA CEUs: 2 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Soil Rehab and Protection: What's the Payback?
Presenter: Dr. Susan Downing Day, Virginia Tech Urban Forestry Program
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members
: $70.00
Webinar Description: During this webinar, you'll learn:
- What are the issues for trees and people?
- What do we lose when soil is degraded?
- Protection is ideal, but what are our other options?
- Soil replacement (just a brief note!)
- Deep soil rehabilitation (the focus of this webinar)
- What is the payback in terms of soil function and quality?
- What is the payback in tree growth?
- Soil Profile Rebuilding (a Spec you can use - it goes deep!)
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Soils and Management During Tree-Related Activity
Presenter: Dr. Jason Grabosky, Professor in the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members
: $70.00
Webinar Description: The webinar will help you move beyond basic soil science by focusing on:
- Biotic capacity
- Viable soil volumes
- Soil density
- Soil compaction and mediation
- The impact of construction on soils and trees
- Soil preservation techniques
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Technical Aspects of Tree Appraisal (A Four-Part Series)
Presenters:
Dr. James Clark, RCA #357, HortScience, Inc.
Brian Gilles, RCA #418, Gilles Consulting
Lisa Hammer, RCA #333, Urban Horticulture
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members: $225.00
Webinar Description: Tree appraisals are part of the bread and butter of any arborist's or Consulting Arborist's livelihood. They play an important role in tree inventories, real-estate transactions, plant condemnation actions,
insurance claims, and more. But, what exactly is involved in establishing a correct appraisal?
ASCA is now offering an in-depth 4-part online course that explores the technical aspects of replacement cost and trunk formula methods - size, species, conditions, and location - providing you with the tools to perform any appraisal with
confidence.
Session One - Overview & The Basics
Session Two - Assessing Size & Species
Session Three - Assessing Condition & Location
Session Four - Summary & the Future
ASCA CEUs: 4 CEUs (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Tree Risk Assessment Reporting
Presenter: Barb Neal, RCA #428, Green Legacy Tree Consultants, Inc.
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members: $70.00
Webinar Description: This webinar details what should be included in a Tree Risk Assessment Report according to the A300 Standards for Tree Risk Assessment and the ISA BMP for Tree Risk Assessment.
Learn how the three levels of tree risk assessment impact the communication of the findings to your client.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
Understanding Professional Service Contracts: Protecting Yourself and Your Clients
Presenter: Andrew J. (Josh) Markus, Carlton Fields, P.A.
ASCA Members: FREE
Non-members: $70.00
Webinar Description: To be a successful Consulting Arborist there are many skills you need to possess - report writing, the ability to conduct forensic investigations, and more. But, you also need to be well versed in business
skills. For example, how do you create a contract that will safeguard you and your clients all at the same time.
During this webinar, Andrew (Josh) Markus, shareholder at Carlton Fields, P.A. will walk you through the components of a sound professional service contract.
ASCA CEUs: 1 CEU (ASCA CEUs will automatically be added to your profile)
ISA CEUs: N/A
