Tropical Landscaping: It’s Time to save the Big trees for us

New prospects for youths of the BVI

When Sean Jobzs returned to his homeland back in 1997 from Canada, he immediately spotted the need for general landscaping in the territory and beautification especially in the Road Town area. It struck him as a dire need owing to the fact that there is a high influx of tourists visiting the territory throughout the year.

This observation pushed him into action and today the British Virgin Islands is home to Mr Jobzs own company called Tropical Landscape. What stands out about this company is that he is not into it just to make a dollar for himself, yes the dollar is a must, but he had taking things much deeper.

Mr Jobzs has brought some of his friends to the territory, one for them to experience what a paradise the BVI is but most of all to allow them to responded to the calling of being volunteers outside of their own country, Canada where they are used to little sun and lots of snow.

The two were Mr. Jobsz: Mr Mark A. Johnson and Mr Jordan B. Pastilloux. The two spent most of their time peaking up the big trees around the town area making them safe for those passing beneath, kids as the play and for the trees themselves when the heavy wind and rains come.

Kudos guys!… but that’s not the extent of things for Mr Jobzs and team. Currently they are working on several initiatives one of which is to introduce persons, especially youths, to the trade and agriculture form called Arboriculture.

“We want to be training more BVIslanders in arboriculture,” a bit of news that spells well for the opening up of new areas of studies for locals, job opportunities and moreso a chance of the greenery of the VI to have a longer healthier home for decades to come.

“Our goal now is to really combine everything with arboriculture where we take it to the next level with tree health care services, pruning techniques, making the right cuts on trees to sustain their health, to promote growth, to promote disease tolerant and even more resistant trees, to promote fruit production and just overall ekistics,” Jobzs said and he added that their main goal is to educate, prevent and train.

“Educating the general public, preventing is doing the right thing for tree health care and in training it’s to take on apprentices and train them so that this legacy will continue for generations and generations to come,” Jobzs explained.

But Just What Is Arboriculture?

Arboriculture is primarily focused on individual woody plants and trees maintained for permanent landscape and amenity purposes, usually in gardens, parks or other populated settings, by arborists, for the enjoyment, protection, and benefit of human beings. It falls under the general umbrella of horticulture.

The science of arboriculture studies how these plants grow and respond to cultural practices and to their environment. The practice of arboriculture includes cultural techniques such as selection, planting, training, fertilization, pest and pathogen control, pruning, shaping, and removal.

A person who practices or studies arboriculture can be termed an ‘arborist’ or an ‘arboriculturist’. A ‘tree surgeon’ is more typically someone who is trained in the physical maintenance and manipulation of trees and therefore more a part of the arboriculture process rather than an arborist.

Training/scholarship opportunities

Jobzs explained that Humber College, with which he has an excellent relationship, is very interesting in the tropical landscape team is doing currently in the BVI. “Humber is very excited with what we are doing down here, they are very excited that arboriculture is coming to the Caribbean,” according to Jobzs.

Both his volunteers have also confirmed that one says that if they can prove to him that the BVI is interested in promoting arboriculture, he is ready and willing to stand beside the team. “That would be a quantum leap for the virgin islands. It would quantum leap us into keeping pace with the rest of the world where tree health care is concerned.”

The team said that their intent of training and introducing arboriculture on a large sale in the BVI is not a marketing stunt. “It’s about opening up a door where anyone can come in and do it. If anyone wants to learn more they would have the opportunity to go to Humber College and get further training and certified,” said volunteer Johnson.

It was further explained that persons would be locally trained and those recognized with the required love, passion and aptitude to sore in the area will be picked out by the team for possible scholarship and otherwise studies at Humber College or others offering that from of courses.

“What we can also do is to help pay for their training, for them to get certified, we can look at all those avenues.. we would love the government of the virgin islands to be on board with this because it’s something I know is necessary.” said Jobzs.

He stressed that tree health care in the territory is not something to be left for the future but it’s something that necessary now.

“ Our tree health care in this territory is rapidly declining, we are producing smaller fruits because our trees are not being treated to produce… this is not something that you would see taking effect immediately because it takes years to kick into effect so you need to start now to influence a better future,” added Pastilloux.

Touching domestic landscaping

“There is nothing wrong with the homeowner that loves gardening but the really need to make the right choices when it comes to the plant and materials they buy.”

The example was given of a 20 x 4ft bed with lots of different plants, “That is a landscaping nightmare,” said Mr Jobzs. “It means competition among the plants, all plants have different needs as far as nitrogen level etc… if you put eight different species of plants together, you will notice it, the ones that have higher nitrogen needs are going to impact the others.”

He explained that it’s all about grouping plants with the same care needs together in landscaping. “looking at plants that are tolerant again of our salt spray, again of the heat among so many other simple technical things. These are the simple things we need to be focusing on when landscaping,” said Jobzs.

His team of volunteers when back on the territory will be available to help direct home owners who need some guidance in making their landscaping in doing so in the best interest of the plants and the environment.