Exploring My Roots with Casey Trees

Contributing writer — Reed Young, Tree Planting High School Intern

Every February, my school suspends classes and every student goes into the world and completes a two-week internship. My goal for my internships has been to develop a better understanding of my city. For the past couple years, I have worked in the D.C. public schools, but this year I decided to take a different path by working at Casey Trees. 

I've grown up in Washington, D.C., and one great thing about being raised here is that the city presents so much. In D.C., you can find places that make you feel like you're in a big city, and you can find other places that make you feel like you're in a small town. D.C. also offers opportunities to enjoy nature in Rock Creek Park, on the shores of the Potomac River, and in smaller recreational parks located throughout the city. I'm fortunate to have had Casey Trees give me the chance to take time to explore my roots and the significance of my city. 

Reed Young at Casey Trees headquarters.

The people that I worked with at Casey Trees are all quality people — the kind of people I would pick to be in a super hero movie to save our city's trees. Every day, I go out with the Tree Planting Crew and do something exciting that requires hard work but in the end is rewarding. In the past two weeks, I've pruned lots of American Elms, assisted planting Trees for Georgetown, selected trees at a nursery to be placed in the city, and attended multiple classes, including one called Stand Up for Trees. These experiences have taken me all across the city to various communities. 

Working at Casey Trees, I've also learned how a good non-profit is run. I am interested in potentially working in the non-profit field, so it has been a valuable experience to be around Casey Trees and see how the organization works. Although there are many different departments at Casey Trees, everyone who works there finds time to come together. This week on Valentine's Day, the staff held a Chili Cook-Off and celebrated everyone's hard work (the vegetarian chili was really good!). This experience and a handful of others has shown me the importance of building community within an organization so that everyone is recognized and has fun doing such great work. 

Overall, I have had a great experience at Casey Trees as a part of a team that's improving life in our city.

A SUMMER WELL SPENT

Contributing Writer - Caroline Michniak, Education Intern

While en route back to the Great Lake State, I pondered my time spent interning at Casey Trees. I am proud of what I accomplished and happy I learned so much about trees.

While at Casey Trees I worked in the education department helping to spread the word about the many benefits of trees. I was struck by how genuinely motivated each staff member was to keeping DC the "City of Trees".

One of the most rewarding parts of my internship was working with Casey Trees' High School Summer Crew. I was able to help organize their orientation session and professional development activities. It was great to see their skill set grow each day. Like staff, each Summer Crew member was very welcoming and friendly. These motivated students are great examples of how we all can get involved in caring for our urban forest.

This summer has also peaked my interest in a career in environmental law or public policy. Being able pass and/or enforce laws safeguarding our environment sounds ideal.

Thank you to Casey Trees for a great summer and learning experience.

INTERNS GRADUATE, CASEY TREES MOURNS

Oh no...the interns are gone. Check out the photos from their graduation tree care event at Newark Community Garden in NW on our Facebook Fan Page.

Total trees watered, miles biked, smiles given, babies kissed and so forth will be calculated in the coming weeks. All we know right now is that we already miss them. Thanks Class of 2009.

INTERN BUZZ - WEEK 7

Contributing Writer - Nina Shallal, Intern

We are in the final weeks of the internship and all the interns are beginning to acknowledge this somber fact by exchanging phone number and promises to stay in touch. Otherwise we are continuing to work in the field, maintaining Casey Trees-planted trees and helping with the Urban Forest Effects and Values (UFORE) Inventory.

On Tuesday we visited the U.S. National Arboretum to learn about the Urban Forestry examination and what it is like to work at the Arboretum. We also went on a tour of the Youth Garden which was filled with beautiful flowers and fruits, many of which we had never seen before. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and was able to give us amazing detail about each plant and fruit being grown. We were even lucky enough to taste some of the organically grown strawberries.

After our tour we created an accessible path around the Youth Garden using custom wood chips. We were thankful that the wood chips were several pounds lighter than the mulch we have been working with everyday. However, after an hour we began to feel the burn. Once the walkway was complete - four hours later - we explored the Asian tree collection which was unbelievable. When the day finally came to an end, we were all exhausted.

For the rest of the week it was business as usual with the exception of Thursday when Casey Trees hosted a press conference for the launch of the Water By-Cycle.

We are extremely proud of the work we have done thus far and look forward to the homestretch.

THE WHEELS ON THE BIKE GO ROUND AND ROUND

Contributing Writer - Karja Hansen, Bike Crew Captain

The Casey Trees Water By-Cycle crew has made tremendous strides these past two weeks Jonathan, one of our summer interns who started out never having ridden a bicycle, experienced his first full day of caring for trees by bicycle, riding over 9 miles and watering over 30 trees on Capitol Hill and in Eastern Market. He was awesome and biked like a champ.

The following day our crew worked downtown along Massachusetts Avenue caring for trees that have not been adopted by any person or business in the neighborhood. If you call our office we will happily tell you where trees still need to be adopted and how to properly water them. We spent a lot of time watering these newly planted trees and were rewarded with bright green leaf buds the following week.

This past Thursday, Casey Trees officially launched the Water By-Cycle at Samuel Gompers Park after weeks of successful trial runs. We we’re interview by Patrick Madden from WAMU, (see above) and Mike Galvin christened the trailer and its brand new signs with a bottle of Sports Drink – poured, not broken. Casey Trees does not litter!

While the summer is coming to an end, the Water By-Cycle is still making its rounds. Be sure to say hello or ask a question about tree care or how you can get involved with Casey Trees.

INTERN BUZZ - WEEK 6

Contributing Writers - Heydi Lovo & Lina Montropoli

This week, we did a lot. We continued with the urban tree maintenance watering and mulching on an average 35 trees per day. Thankfully, frequent rain helped the the trees get the 25 gallons of water they need each week to survive.

On Tuesday, we had the opportunity to volunteer at Common Good City Farm located at 3rd and V Streets, NW. As an urban farm its focus is very different than other farms and community gardens. It provides food for about 30 local low-income families who have volunteered and contributed to the upkeep of the farm. Common Good City Farm has been in existence at its current location for about 6 months. We helped by mulching a small field to help boost future food production and constructed a frame to hold compost bins.


On Friday, Sue Erhardt, Director of Education, joined us in the field. We spent the day at Lafayette School and Recreation Center in Northwest. We serviced about 50 trees; watering, weeding, mulching, and pruning along the way.

In addition to the watering trucks, the Water By-Cycle crew made it to Casey Trees-planted trees located all around the city including Capitol Hill and downtown.

We have all had a lot of fun while learning and developing our urban tree care knowledge over the past six weeks. We look forward to the last two weeks of the internship!

INTERN BUZZ - WEEK 5

Contributing Writer - Jonathan Fuentes, Intern

Week 5 and the interns are still strong!

This week has been very educational and exiting. Our professional development day was held at the U.S Botanic Garden where we participated in two tours and an urban forestry discussion. It was a great opportunity to learn about a diverse collection of trees and plants all located in one place. We saw everything from beautiful but poisonous orchids to tall cocoa trees.

One thing that especially interested me during the tour was the science of grafting, where you can take a part of one tree and fuse it to another. It was like the producers of ER became arborists.

The following day seemed like a miracle - it rained, reducing the number of trees that needed to be watered. What we did not plan for was getting rained on.

All the interns have established a great working relationship and are working hard to develop strong leadership skills. Only three weeks left of the internship.

INTER BUZZ - WEEK FOUR

Contributing Writer - Evan Douglas, Intern

Casey Trees’ Urban Forestry Summer Internship has been a blast. In the past four weeks I have been to so many places in District I never knew existed such as the U.S. Botanic Garden and the National Park Service elm nursery.

Without question, the most fun professional development events we have had so far was the tree climbing event at the U.S. National Arboretum with The Davey Tree Expert Company last Tuesday. After safety and climbing instructions, each of us had the opportunity to climb a 60’ Chinese cork oak. Tree climbing is a lot more difficult than it looks! Following the climb a few Davey Trees arborists talked to us about arboriculture and career opportunities in urban forestry. I would really like to learn more about both.


Our tree care work has been going smoothly despite the warm and muggy weather. It is always great to have residents come up to us while we are watering and mulching the trees to learn more about Casey Trees or basic tree care. It makes us feel like we are helping make DC a better place to live.

Only four weeks of the internship remain. I wonder what we will learn next!

INTERN BUZZ - WEEK 3

Contributing Writer - Taiysha Hobbs, Intern
The third week in this summer internship has been great and exciting. We are all getting to know each other more and it makes the job experience more fun. As time goes on throughout this internship, I learn more and more about the benefits of trees. It is a rewarding feeling to know that I am trying to improve the lives of trees and the environment.

I would have to say that the highlight of week 3 was on Tuesday when we visited Barry Stahl. During our visit we planted trees, potted baby trees, visited the greenhouse nursery, and learned about the different types of trees. The best part of the visit personally was planting the trees. I planted three trees total: an elm, a silver maple, and a red maple. Despite the hard work of planting a tree, seeing the product is a very invigorating feeling.

On Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday I did tree maintenance around the city. We mainly worked in the Mt. Pleasant and Columbia Heights areas. However on Wednesday Gregory Prunell, an arborist from Ocean City, Maryland, came to visit and observe how we maintained trees around the city. He was really fun and cool. I love how he was so passionate about trees and his occupation. Hopefully, I will be that passionate about whatever career path I choose to pursue.

To cap off the week, I had another awesome outing with the bikes in the city on Friday. Even though the bike that carries the water trailer was in the shop, we still managed to water a few trees on Friday.

I am really enjoying my time with Casey Trees. It has been an exciting three weeks and I can’t wait to see what the next five weeks will unfold.

INTERN BUZZ - WEEK 2

Contributing Writer - Jaine Hernandez, Intern

As part of my internship with Casey trees I have learned a great deal about how to properly protect and care for a tree. Just like people, trees can get sick, require protection - mulch and stakes can help a lot- and they need water to stay alive (20-25 gallons a week in fact).

Before I became an intern I did not fully appreciate the importance and value of trees. Now I understand how trees help clean the air, mitigate storm water runoff, produce oxygen, and even alleviate stress. The latter I am very familiar with and thankful for. Whenever I work with trees, I feel much more relaxed.

This past week - week two of the internship - we focused on mulching newly planted trees primarily in the mornings to “beat the heat”. I love this part because we get to travel all around the City on the bikes provided for the Water By-Cycle program - nothing is every repetitive.









My favorite part of the week was the tree walk in Rock Creek Park. With the help of Jim Woodworth, Director of Tree Planting, we identified several different tree species including the two most common species in the park, the American beech and oak. We even saw creeks and deer. Looking at the trees made me think a lot about how trees in the forest are different from city trees. The trees out in the forest are more competitive for water and light than the city trees, yet city trees have more risks with cars pollution and miscarriage by people. Being a Casey Trees intern has helped me to genuinely appreciate nature.

I also just have to say that I love my fellow interns. We have lots of fun helping to care for trees.

INTERN BUZZ - WEEK 1

Contributing Writer - Alex Reade, Urban Forestry Intern

Casey Trees' Summer Internship got off to a great star last week. We managed to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time.

Day 1 served as an introduction to the internship. After we played a few icebreakers to get to know our fellow interns and staff members better, we heard from various crew chiefs and directors of Casey Trees. We got a chance to further learn about what Casey Trees does and the mission of Casey Trees, which is to restore, enhance and protect the tree canopy of Washington DC. After this, we went on a short tree walk through downtown and learned about the different types of trees that can be found in that area. After the first day we all were very much looking forward to the rest of the summer.


Day 2 started off with an introduction to the various tools and safety equipment that we would be using during the summer and then a lesson on how to properly care for a tree, which includes weeding, mulching, and watering. For the rest of the day, we took care of the trees in the Tenleytown area. A group tree maintenance competition between the interns added some excitement to the task.


Day 3 was bike training day. We started the day by having a certified bike riding educator come speak to us about riding bikes in the city and bike safety in general. This information was important because we will be riding bikes while maintaining trees downtown this summer, which is something new that Casey Trees has added to the internship. After this we learned how to maintain the bikes that we will be using. We learned how to check the brakes and the gears, and how to change a flat tire. I am sure that all of those things will come in handy while we are riding bikes downtown this summer.

Day 4 included prepping the truck for the next day's stewardship event and a walking tour of the Brookland neighborhood. We visited a few of the historic houses in the area and then the Franciscan Monastery. Following lunch we heard from Dr. Tony Mucciardi, who developed the Tree Radar Unit (TRU), a device that can scan the inside of a tree in order to determine the health of the tree without having to do an invasive procedure.


Day 5 featured the first stewardship event of the summer - Rock Creek Church Cemetery at St. Paul ‘s Rock Creek. Approximately 15 volunteers helped us care for the newly planted trees. Luckily the heat hadn’t really hit at that point in the morning so we were all able to work pretty comfortably. Remarkably we completed the work in only a couple of hours so we ended the day with a tree walk on the cemetery grounds. It was just full of magnificent trees.

Overall, it was a very productive first week and I think we’re all very excited for the next seven weeks.

Water By-Cycle Preview

Guest Contributor - Karja Hansen, Bike Crew Chief

Three weeks ago I came on board as Casey Trees Water By-Cycle Bike Crew Chief and the experience thus far has been astounding. Thanks to amazing support from Casey Trees staff, volunteers and partners we now have a fully operational bike shop, a fleet of 10 quality bicycles, and a trailer capable of hauling 300 pounds of tree care equipment.

Before the Water By-Cycle program fully launches, we are coordinating bike watering routes, teaching our interns bicycle safety, and having them practice street biking.

On Friday, two of our interns - Jonathan and Heydi - and I spent the afternoon working on bicycling basics. Within two hours, Jonathan went from never having ridden a bike to successfully riding 100 feet and executing a controlled stop and dismount. Heydi’s enthusiasm and persistence was awesome. By the end of the lesson, Heydi was riding uphill from a dead stop, braking and cornering with the best of them.

There is nothing like personal accomplishment.

On Monday, two more interns - Waaiz and Nina - and I embarked on the inaugural bike test run, riding eight miles and watering trees at eight planting locations. Despite Waaiz and Nina having minimal street biking experience, both maintained confident and safe riding positions throughout the entire day – all with big grins on their faces. Beyond having a successful introduction to street biking, Nina caught a strangling tie on a tree's root collar and Waaiz kept everyone laughing all afternoon.

I have no doubt that the Water By-Cycle program will be a successful addition to Casey Trees tree planting and education initiatives and I am looking forward to the rest of the summer.

Check back here often for more Water By-Cycle adventures and to find out when the bike fleet will be officially unveiled. Tomorrow also begins our Wednesday Intern Blog Posts - Alex Reade is up first.

THE INTERNS ARE HERE

Casey Trees' 2009 High School Urban Forestry Summer Interns have officially reported for duty. After a very selective process, nine students were selected for the 8-week long internship.

Their summer will be very full and very rewarding. In addition to watering and mulching trees, students will be exposed to a variety of green careers such as arboriculture, urban agriculture, organic gardening, and more. Interns will also be manning our summer bike watering program - Water By-Cycle. Be sure too look out for them and other bicyclists on the road these next few weeks.

Check back here each Wednesday to read what the interns are up to and learning in their own words. Each intern will be a contributing author to the Tree Speak blog.

Get to know each of the interns - Waaiz, Evan, Jonathan, Jaine, Taiysha, Heydi, Lina, Alex, and Nina - here. Learn more about the internship program here.

CALLING ALL HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

For the eighth year, Casey Trees is offering high school students the opportunity to learn about trees and tree care, start to build a professional resume, be exposed to "green" jobs, and earn cash.

Casey Trees High School Urban Forestry Summer Internship Program is now accepting applications for its 2009 session (June 23-August 15, 2009). Interns learn how to maintain and identify trees, develop community outreach and organizing skills, and become better acquainted with the City's diverse neighborhoods.

Students earn $9.00 an hour and work 35 hours/week average, Tuesday - Saturday.

Applicants must be:

• A DC resident
• At least 16 years of age
  
• Registered at a DC public, private or charter school

Applications are due Friday, May 1, 2009 and may be completed online or submitted by mail, fax or email.

For questions, contact Christina Escobar, Education Coordinator, at 202-349-1896 or cescobar@caseytrees.org.